Industry policy under the accord: Reform vs traditionalism in economic management

During the emergence and implementation of the ALP‐ACTU Accord, commentators havé paid comparatively little attention to its industry‐policy aspect. But the Accord itself rests on important changes in Australian unionism, its new priority in employment policy and ambition to participate in policymaking in general. These changes have now crystallised in a more penetrating analysis of manufacturing decline and demands for industry‐policy reform within the framework of the Accord. The Hawke government, however, has fallen under the influence of an older, institutionalised tradition of Australian economic management that is frustrating the attempt to use industry policy to return to maintainable full employment and assert the labour movement's social priorities. The present conflict over industry policy thus represents a major threat to the Accord.