Union Rights of Entry: the New Contested Terrain?

One of the most significant changes made to the legal regulation of unions under the Workplace Relations and Other Legislation Amendment Act 1996 (Cth.) was to rights of entry. Rights of entry are a fundamentally important apparatus for unions, not only for the purpose of communicating to, and accessing members, but also as part of the process of enforcing workplace terms and conditions. The changes to rights of entry have significant potential to marginalise and exclude unions. This paper traces the experiences of two quite different unions, revealing similar results. Rights of entry are increasingly becoming the new contested terrain, manifest in hostile employer approaches, attitudes and tactics.