This is an article I have written about the industrial laws applying to domestic service . It is to found in Thomson Reuters’ Workplace Review , Winter 2016 edition.
On 25 April 2016 my good friend Michael Gordon Roberts reached the statutory age of senility for service as a Commissioner of the Fair Work Commission as mandated by s 629(1)(a) of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth).
I first met Michael when I was a fresher at the University of Sydney when he was completing his Arts degree. We shared an interest in politics and became life-long friends.
Michael was raised in the Sydney suburb of Dulwich Hill, the son of Clive and Genevieve (nee Patterson) Roberts and educated at Christian Brothers’ Lewisham. Michael’s middle name, Gordon, was, in accordance with his father’s family tradition, in honour of General Gordon of Khartoum. His father had served in the Second AIF on an anti-aircraft battery in the defence of Darwin. Michael’s mother was fiercely proud of her Irish Catholic background. Contrarily, she supported both Irish Republicanism and the Australian constitutional monarchy. During ‘The Troubles’ in Northern Ireland a radio bulletin announced the death of two British soldiers, to which she commented, “it is indeed sad, but they would not have died if they hadn’t been there.”
After university, Michael started work for a trade union, the Professional Radio Employees Institute of Australasia (PREI), from 1973 to 1992, first as an Industrial Officer and then as the Institute’s General Secretary. He recalls attending a meeting of members at the studios of Channel 9 in the Sydney suburb of Artarmon. Kerry Packer heard that there were union officials on the premises and had them summoned to his office. In a brief and blunt encounter Packer said to Roberts:
“I’ve heard about you. You’re the one who looks like one of us but you are really one of them, now sit down. I am in charge around here and I don’t want you causing me any annoyance. Got it? I am late for a plane, goodbye.”
Compliant with the ACTU’s and the Hawke/Keating Governments’ union amalgamation policies, the PREI somewhat reluctantly amalgamated with the Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU), the acronym of which some wits said stood for the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. For four years Michael was the Secretary of its Technical, Communications and Aviation Division. The amalgamation process in the early 1990s of merging many smaller craft unions to form large conglomerates, was one of the reasons for the slow decline of union membership particularly in private industry. Some of the constituent unions of the CPSU had been in many bitter, protracted demarcation disputes in the 1980s with the PREI. A large section of PREI membership came from private industry. Many members of the PREI did not long continue with union membership under the CPSU banner.
Michael was appointed by the Howard Government as a Commissioner of the Australian Industrial Relations Commission and sworn in by its then President Justice Geoff Giudice in October 2001. He was re-appointed to Fair Work Australia (now the Fair Work Commission). He served on several industry panels, including Coal Mining, Road Transport and Broadcasting, together with the unfair dismissal jurisdiction, until he attained the age of 65 years on ANZAC Day 2016, describing life on the FWC bench as “congenial, collegiate and yet semi-monastic”. If one adheres to the modern notion that “Sixty is the new forty” the 65 years of age retirement rule for the FWC is a joke and should be at least brought into line with the federal judiciary’s 70 years of age rule. With age comes wisdom and experience, why does the Fair Work Act deny its industrial umpire such important attributes? Michael continues to serve as a Commissioner of the Tasmanian Industrial Commission on an ad hoc basis and will be a consultant with the legal publishers, Thomson Reuters.
One major event in Michael’s life says a lot about him as a man. At the end of 1974 and the beginning of 1975 he and I toured South Vietnam. At the time I was heavily involved in student politics. Myself as a student leader and he as a young trade union official, we were on a speaking tour quixotically supporting the local war effort against the North Vietnamese and the Vietcong. During our six week stint Roberts met a young Vietnamese girl, Lan. I did not see much of him for the last couple of weeks of the tour. My exhortatory speeches for a greater war effort and solidarity against the Communists were soon done in Michael’s absence, he having been shot by Cupid’s arrow. We both returned to Australia in late February 1975. Within a few weeks of our return, despite our oratory, the war took a grim turn. What was to be a strategic withdrawal by President Nguyen Van Thieu’s army turned into a rout. With the North Vietnamese on the cusp of victory, Michael flew back to Saigon to marry his girlfriend in a Buddhist ceremony and somehow both escaped the looming maelstrom. With Indiana Jones-like derring-do Roberts arrived in Saigon and left with his bride on the last RAAF evacuation flight within a few short days of NVA tanks crashing through the gates of the Presidential Palace in Saigon and capitulation of the South on 30 April 1975. In June, I was Best Man at their Catholic wedding in Sydney and then Godfather to their son.
Lan and Michael’s marriage produced Catherine and Stephen. Catherine is now Head of Practical Law at Thomson Reuters and Stephen is a successful business owner in Newcastle. Together, they have made him a proud Grandfather of six.
I wish Michael well on the next stage of his career.
Congratulations to Georgia Feltis for winning the 2012 St John’s College’s Fr Les Cashen Essay Prize with her essay on William Wardell – “St John’s First Architect”.
Downlaod and read Georgia’s winning essay by clicking the button below.
In 2010 I was elected as Patron of the St John’s College Student’s Club. As Patron I established an annual essay prize. The first was on the topic of Richard O’Connor, an old boy of the College ,a draftsman of the Australian Constitution and a member of the first High Court of Australia. The winning entry was by Zac Thompson. Zac’s essay is set out below. Patrick O’Sullivan .
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FR. LES CASHEN ESSAY COMPETITION 2010 GREAT God of Nations, throned on high, This stanza by federalist Reverend Professor Gosman emotively reflects the unique zeitgeist experienced in Australia in the formative years of its federation. The twilight of Australia’s nineteenth century was an era in which the ideals of upstanding statesmen came to the fore, crafting a new nation and defining a distinctive Australian identity. This push by notable individuals for governmental reform is a trait of almost every federal nation in modern history, Australia included. In some, such as the US and Germany, these individuals are sanctified as ‘founding fathers’, and although such people existed in Australia, they are less easily recognised today. Justice Richard Edward O’Connor was one Australian statesman who toiled for federation based on principles of egalitarianism, justice, rationality and democracy. |
He is, with the likes of Parkes, Deakin, Barton and so on, worthy of the status of an Australian ‘founding father’. In identifying O’Connor as one of these statesmen, this essay will illustrate in what way, and to what extent he left a mark on the period. Furthermore, it will examine notable influences in O’Connor’s life and inquire as to how they shaped and strengthened his character. O’Connor is remembered today for his contributions to the law, politics, community and especially Australia’s federation. This essay is not a biography, nor eulogy of Mr.O’Connor, but rather a short exploration of the man and his influence. Thus investigating O’Connor, his achievements and his background will not only shed light on the man, but also provide an insight into the ideals of the era, many still pertinent today.
O’Connor remained relatively unknown prior to the 1897 federal convention, however his role in crafting the Australian federation was significant throughout the late 1880’s and 1890’s. The ‘federal spirit’ in Australia was a sentiment felt strongly by many in the decades before federation. As a member of the Sydney legal milieu, it is likely O’Connor formed his federalist convictions early, his role throughout the 1890’s illustrating the strength of his views. In 1891, O’Connor and close friend Edmund Barton played instrumental roles in forming the Australasian Federation League, and the Central Federation League. These two organisations helped buoy the drive for federation after the repudiation of the first draft constitution proposed in 1891.
Egalitarianism runs as a common theme that underlines O’Connor’s contributions to federation. Arguably O’Connor’s hand in crafting Australia’s federation has been overshadowed by that of his companion, the later Prime Minister, Edmund Barton. Yet one observes that this enduring friendship permeated the many debates and constitutional conventions in the 1890’s, with both men seconding each other’s proposals to the various constitutional drafts. This esprit de corps illustrates the alignment and clarity of their visions for Australia’s future. Accounts of the time depict O’Connor as possessing a magnetic personality, and that he was very well liked at the federal conventions. This amicability most likely played a significant role in O’Connor’s election, with Barton and Sir John Downer, to the second constitutional drafting committee. In the view of the writer, it is most plausible that O’Connor’s friendliness and conversational qualities were honed in his secondary and tertiary education, and vocational background at the NSW Bar; and was key in enabling him to contribute to crafting Australia’s federation. Besides an uncompromising dedication to federation, O’Connor’s command of expression would be tested in the explanation and defence of the draft constitution in 1898.
In addition to egalitarianism, principles of democratic representation and equality underscore O’Connor’s lobbying points in the Commonwealth’s formation. Logically, O’Connor’s parliamentary experience in New South Wales would have exposed him to loopholes in modus operandi of parliament at the time. Thus in the 1898 convention, O’Connor’s strong position on deadlocks highlights the sharpness of his vision for an effective parliament. Moreover, O’Connor’s push for equality of interstate railway tariffs demonstrates his vision that the proposed constitution should not discriminate between states; and that issues such as this economic one be issue be equal under the constitution. As the recent federal election conveys, the size of Australia’s parliament remains a pertinent issue in which O’Connor had a hand in shaping. O’Connor advocated, particularly in opposition to George Reid, that the power of the federal parliament should be checked, with the size of the Senate never exceeding half the size of the House of Representatives. This demonstrates that democratic values were central to O’Connor’s view and that he successfully campaigned for amendments according to his vision.
With a brief look into the most impressionable years of O’Connor’s life; those of his education, one begins to grasp how O’Connor’s strength of character was shaped. In 1851, to Richard and Mary-Anne O’Connor, Richard Edward was born. From 1867 -71 O’Connor was enrolled at Sydney Grammar School, which is one of several institutions that undeniably shaped his integrity later in the century. As the establishment was modelled after the English grammar schools, the education O’Connor received, particularly under the tutelage of headmaster A. B. Weigall would have focused particularly on the classics and humanities. SGS is also where O’Connor’s enduring friendship with Edmund Barton began, and it is likely where his notable communication skills originated also. O’Connor’s tertiary education is more adequately documented. At the University of Sydney he completed a B.A. in 1871, and an M.A. in 1873 before reading law and being admitted to the NSW Bar in 1876. O’Connor’s time at the University of Sydney illustrates his continued interest in the classics and humanities. As a member of the Sydney School of Arts Debating Club, he honed his arbitration skills and encountered both anti-federalists such as the Heydon brothers and Frederick Darley, and pro-federalists George Reid (whom he would later debate constitutional points with in 1897-8) and William MacMillan. It is likely that in these circles, not only did O’Connor refine his debating manner, but also strengthened his views on how Australia should be federated. It is also worth noting that during O’Connor’s time at university, he resided at St.John’s College, where his studies would have been conducted with a Roman Catholic backdrop. One may draw a connection between O’Connor’s modest and assiduous nature and his faith, as it is either that or his Irish heritage that convinced him to refuse two knighthoods.
In Montesquieu’s view federation is ‘a kind of assemblage of societies that constitutes a new one’, illustrating the importance of tailoring a new federation to the community of the new nation. This essay briefly depicts Richard E. O’Connor’s role in shaping Australia’s federation, and points at several influences that contributed to his egalitarian strength of character. His role in the drafting of the constitution conveys O’Connor was a man of considerable mettle and intellect, that qualified him for positions such as Solicitor-General of NSW and later a seat on the High Court Bench. In the words of Alfred Deakin, O’Connor was ‘hard-working, dignified, frank and sincere’, and it is these qualities of his character that enabled him to shape Australia’s federation, and thus its future.
Z B THOMPSON
B.A. I
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bennett, Scott. Federation (Melbourne: Cassell Australia Pty. Ltd.,1975) pp.1-65, 140-190
Brownrigg, Jeff. ‘‘The Sentiment of Nationality’: Bathurst and Popular Support for Federation’ accessible online via Senate Publications, at http://www.aph.gov.au/senate/pubs/pops/pop32/c16.pdf Accessed: 20 August 2010
Irving, Helen. ‘The People and their Convention’ in Steps to Federation, Patricia Clarke (ed.) ( Melbourne: Australian Scholarly Publishing Pty. Ltd., 2001) pp. 55-71
Irving, Helen. The Centenary Companion to Australian Federation (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999) pp. 17-285
Lahey, John. Faces of Federalism (Melbourne: Royal Historical Society of Victoria, 2000) pp. 46-105
La Nauze, J.A. The Making of the Australian Constitution (Carlton: Melbourne University Press, 1972) pp.146-258
Rutledge, Martha. ‘O’Connor, Richard Edward (1851 – 1912)’, Australian Dictionary of Biography, 11, (Melbourne University Press, 1988) pp. 56-59
Quick, John., and Garran, Robert R. The annotated constitution of the Australian Commonwealth accessible online via Sydney Electronic Text and Image Service, at http://setis.library.usyd.edu.au/ozlit/pdf/fed0014.pdf Accessed: 20 August 2010
Windeyer, J.B. ‘Weigall, Albert Bythesea (1840 – 1912)’, Australian Dictionary of Biography, 6, (Carlton: Melbourne University Press, 1976) pp. 375-376
