Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry ("ACCI") is the governing body for Australian business associations, and takes a role in representing the views of Australian business to government.

1 Formation
2 Membership
3 CEO
4 Activities
5 Controversy
6 Publications
7 List of Members
8 References
9 External links

[edit] Formation

The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry has been the peak council of Australian business associations for 105 years and traces its heritage back to Australia’s first chamber of commerce in 1826.

The ACCI is the ongoing amalgamation of the nation’s leading federal business organisations - Australian Chamber of Commerce, the Associated Chamber of Manufactures of Australia, the Australian Council of Employers Federations and the Confederation of Australian Industry.

[edit] Membership

Membership of the ACCI is made up of the State and Territory Chambers of Commerce and Industry together with the major national industry associations.

Through its membership, ACCI represents over 350,000 businesses nation-wide and its employer network employs over 4 million people which makes ACCI the largest business organisation in Australia. Its motto is “Leading Australian Business.”

[edit] CEO

The acting Chief Executive Officer is Peter Anderson. Between 2002 and 2008, the CEO was Peter William Hendy, who is also on the board of ACCI member organisation, Standards Australia.^[1]

[edit] Activities

Its specific activities include:

representation and advocacy to governments, parliaments, tribunals and policy makers both domestically and internationally;
business representation on a range of statutory and business boards, committees and other fora;
representing business in national and international fora including the Australian Industrial Relations Commission, Australian Safety and Compensation Council, International Labour Organisation, International Organisation of Employers, International Chamber of Commerce, the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the Confederation of Asia-Pacific Chambers of Commerce and Industry and the Confederation of Asia-Pacific Employers;
research and policy development on issues concerning Australian business;
the publication of leading business surveys and other information products; and
providing forums for collective discussion amongst businesses on matters of law and policy affecting commerce and industry.

[edit] Controversy

In the lead up to the 2007 Australian federal election, the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry sponsored an advertising campaign against the Australian Labor Party, to promote the Howard government's WorkChoices industrial relations legislation. Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry CEO Peter Hendy, its policy director, Peter Anderson, and its its communications director, Brett Hogan (all former employees of Liberal minister Peter Reith), were on the committee which organised the campaign.^[2]

After the 2007 Australian federal election, three employees of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry left the organisation to take up positions of employment as personal staff for Liberal Party of Australia leader Dr Brendan Nelson. These include the ACCI’s director of economics, Michael Potter, who became Dr Nelson's chief economist, Nicolle Flint, who became an advisor to Dr Nelson, and the ACCI's CEO Peter Hendy, who left the ACCI to become Dr Nelson's chief of staff.^[3]

[edit] Publications

A range of publications are available from ACCI, including:

the ACCI Review a monthly analysis of major policy issues affecting the Australian economy and business;
issue papers commenting on business’ views of contemporary policy issues;
Policies of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry – the annual bound compendium of ACCI’s policy platforms;
the Westpac-ACCI Survey of Industrial Trends - the longest, continuous running private sector survey in Australia. A leading barometer of economic activity and the most important survey of manufacturing industry in Australia;
the SAI Global-ACCI Survey of Investor Confidence – which gives an analysis of the direction of investment by business in Australia;
the St.George-ACCI Business Expectations Survey - which aggregates individual surveys by ACCI member organisations and covers firms of all sizes in all States and Territories;
the St.George-ACCI Small Business Survey – which is a survey of small business derived from the Business Expectations Survey data;
workplace relations reports and discussion papers, including the ACCI Modern Workplace: Modern Future 2002–2010 Policy Blueprint and the Functioning Federalism and the Case for a National Workplace Relations System and The Economic Case for Workplace Relations Reform Position Papers;
occupational health and safety guides and updates, including the National OHS Strategy and the Modern Workplace: Safer Workplace Policy Blueprint;
trade reports and discussion papers including the Riding the Chinese Dragon: Opportunities and Challenges for Australia and the World and Riding the Indian Elephant: Opportunities and Challenges for Australia and the World Position Papers;
education and training reports and discussion papers;
the ACCI Annual Report providing a summary of major activities and achievements for the previous year; and
the ACCI Taxation Reform Blueprint: A Strategy for the Australian Taxation System 2004–2014.