Victoria: Rolling Back – or Reinventing – the Kennett Revolution?

Abstract

The election of the Kennett government in 1992 heralded an era of unprecedented change in public sector employment and industrial relations in Victoria. The Employee Relations Act 1992 and the Public Sector Management Act 1992 redefined the public sector in Victoria and the relationship, both collective and individual, of public sector employees with government. In October 1999 the Kennett government unexpectedly lost office. But despite its pre‐election rhetoric promising a return to more conventional arrangements, there is little indication that the Bracks government intends to significantly dismantle the Kennett legacy in public sector employment and industrial relations.