Abstract:
The Cole Royal Commission into the building and construction sector
recommended radical 'reforms' in that sector's labour market. The Commission
based its recommended changes on evidence of lacklustre productivity for the
period under review. Updating multi/actor productivity reveals that the
lacklustre productivity growth for the last three approximate decades is, on
average, comparable to that of the rest of the economy. Some aspects of the
pattern of industrial disputes appear to have been unappreciated. For example,
while it is true that dispute rates have in recent years been high relative to most
other sectors, during earlier periods-in particular during the period of the
Accord (l983-1996)-dispute rates were falling more rapidly than elsewhere. It
is concluded that the rationale for radical reform is less secure than that argued
for in the original report.
