Founded 1899 Country Australia | Date dissolved 1983 | |
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Full name Federated Moulders' (Metals) Union of Australia merged into Amalgamated Metals, Foundry and Shipwrights' Union | ||
The Federated Moulders' (Metals) Union of Australia (FMU) was an Australian trade union which existed between 1899 and 1983. It represented moulders - skilled tradesmen who fabricated the moulds used to cast metal products in foundries.
History
The FMU was originally formed as the Federated Iron, Brass and Steel Moulders' Union of Australasia in 1899 through the amalgamation of several state-based unions, although it did not achieve registration under the federal arbitration system until 1916. It changed its name in 1930 to the Federated Moulders' (Metals) Union of Australia.
Although machine moulding was first introduced into Australia in the late 19th century the FMU initially refused to admit machine and plate moulders into the union, regarding the work as relatively unskilled compared to that done by fully qualified 'jobbing' moulders. These workers were therefore organised by industrial unions, such as the Federated Stove and Piano Frame Makers Association of Australia and the Federated Agricultural Implement Machinery and Ironworkers Association of Australia. In 1920 the FMU did expand its coverage to allow machine moulders to join, although the union's staunch opposition to the piece-work system of payment under which most machine moulders worked meant that few could become members. Despite its exclusive attitude towards membership, which kept the total number of FMU members low throughout its existence, the vital position of moulders in major industries such as mining, manufacturing and the railways ensured that the union remained industrially powerful. In 1983 the FMU merged with the Amalgamated Metal Workers and Shipwrights Union (AMWSU) to form the Amalgamated Metals, Foundry and Shipwrights' Union.