Historical Current Affairs Analysis

You are invited to a talk to be given by Keith Harvey entitled:

‘The Life and Times of John Peter Maynes’

Although not a well-known public figure, John Maynes was a central character on the anti-communist right of the Australian Labour movement for most of the second half of the 20th century. He was National President of the Federated Clerks Union for nearly 40 years and was a leading figure in the anti-Communist National Civic Council, second only to B A Santamaria.

A generation of post-war anti-communist trade union leaders is passing away. John Maynes died in April this year. The previous month, the Ironworkers’ Laurie Short died. Both men were active in the ALP Industrial Groups when they were established by the ALP in the immediate post-war period to fight communist influence and control over the ALP via affiliated trade unions.

Both men led teams who defeated communist control of their respective unions. When the ALP Industrial groups were disbanded and the party split, Short stayed in the ALP along with most ‘Groupers’ in NSW.

John Maynes and colleagues in a small number of unions in Victoria found themselves outside the ALP from the mid 1950s until the four Victorian unions re-affiliated with the ALP in the 1980s.

What led people like John Maynes to take up the fight against communist control in the union movement? What success did they have? What is their legacy to Australia, Australian unions, workers and society?

Keith Harvey worked in the National Office of the Clerks Union from 1979 until 1993. He was a member of the FCU Victorian Branch Executive from 1982 until 1988 during which time John Maynes was Branch [as well as National] President. Keith is the author of an article on John Maynes published in The Recorder, the journal of the Melbourne Branch of the Society for the Study of Labour History.

Venue -

Details of Keith’s talk are:
7:30 PM on Wednesday the 26th August at -
The Golden Triangle Restaurant
123 Park Street South Yarra
(Corner of Park Street and Domain Road)
Mel ways Reference Map 58 B2

By special arrangement with the Golden Triangle Restaurant the function room will be available for HCAA regulars to meet on the night from 6:30 PM onward.  Although refreshments will be served the restaurant’s management would be appreciative if guests purchased a drink and/or a meal.

RSVP:
Contacts (Listed in alphabetical order):
David Bennett   (03) 9898 3629
David Cowling   (03) 9584 6247
Klara Doroszlay   (03) 9889 6014
Jim Hewat   (03) 9306 4318
Andrew Knopfelmacher (03) 9529 7341
Tom Rigg    (03) 9366 6168