Australian Society for the Study of Labour History


The Australian Society for the Study of Labour History was founded in 1961 to study 'the working class situation... and social history in the fullest sense'. Founding members included Asa Briggs, Bob Gollan, Eric Fry, and others. Influenced by the work of E.P. Thompson, and the formation of the British, they hoped to make labour history 'a popular pursuit, a study, and a part of ordinary people's lives'. The Society has published the journal Labour History since 1962, with the intention for it to 'be of immediate practical value to the labour movement'. The Society has branches in the ACT, Queensland, South Australia, Victoria, and Western Australia.

Labour History Editors

  • Nos 1-3 – Eric Fry
  • Nos 4-5 – Bob Gollan and B.D. Shields
  • No. 6 – E.C. Fry; J.S. Hagan; B.J. McFarlane; B.D. Shields
  • No. 7 – E.C. Fry; J.S. Hagan; B.J. MacFarlane; J. Merritt
  • No. 8 – R.A Gollan; J.S. Hagan; B.J. McFarlane
  • Nos 9-10 – B.J. McFarlane; E.C. Fry; J.S. Hagan
  • Nos 11-14 – B.J. McFarlane; N. Bede Nairn; Robert Cooksey
  • Nos 15-16 – B.J. McFarlane; J. Molony; N. Bede Nairn; Robert Cooksey
  • No. 18 – J.D. Ritchie; J. Molony; N. Bede Nairn; G. Osborne
  • Nos 19-22 – J.D. Ritchie
  • No. 23 – Jill Waterhouse
  • No. 24 – special edition Strikes: Studies in Twentieth Century Australian Social History – J. Iremonger; J. Merritt; G. Osborne
  • Nos 25-8 – David Walker
  • No. 29 – special edition Women at Work – Ann Curthoys; Susan Eade; and Peter Spearritt
  • Nos 30-43 – John Merritt
  • No. 44 – Susan Allen
  • Nos 45-49 – John Merritt
  • No. 50 – John Merritt; John Knott
  • Nos 51-57 – Ken Buckley
  • Nos 58-72 – Terry Irving
  • Nos 76-99 – Greg Patmore
  • No. 100 – John Shields
  • Nos 101-110 – John Shields
  • Nos 111- – Diane Kirkby

Special Issues

No. 17 – The Great Depression in Australia – Robert Cooksey
Not numbered 'Jack Lang' – Heather Radi; Peter Spearritt
No. 35 'Who are our enemies? Racism and the working class in Australia' – Ann Curthoys; Andrew Markus
Not numbered 'Labour in Conflict: The 1949 Coal Strike' – Phillip Deery
No. 61 'Women, Work, and the Labour Movement in Australia and Aotearoa/New Zealand' – Raelene Frances; Bruce Scates
No. 69 'Aboriginal Workers' – Ann McGrath; Kay Saunders; Jackie Huggins
No. 71 Comparative Labour History: Australia and Canada, Labour/Le Travail – Greg Kealey; Greg Patmore
No. 106 'Labour and the Great War: The Australian Working Class and the Making of ANZAC' – Frank Bongiorno, Raelene Frances, Bruce Scates