When the Builders Labourers Federation was deregistered by the Hawke government in 1986, the Australian industrial relations system was built around centralised wage fixing, conciliation and arbitration. Unions registered under legislation had monopoly rights to represent members covered by their “eligibility rule” in formal industrial tribunal proceedings and enforcement proceedings.

That all changed in the 1990s. Paul Keating replaced centralised wage fixing with enterprise bargaining and John Howard introduced freedom of association and the workplace ombudsman, now known as the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO).