The birth of political parties
NOT IN THE TEST This part is worth reading, but the citizenship test never asks about it.
By the 1880s, workers in Australia had built up strong trade unions. In times of economic depression and drought, these unions held strikes to protect wages and working conditions.
In 1891, these workers created a political party, the Labor Party. Its main focus was to improve workers’ wages and conditions. Middle-class people lived more comfortably than the workers but they understood the workers’ situation. Official boards were created to set wages and to prevent strikes. In 1907, the Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration determined a minimum wage at a level at which a working man, his wife and three children could live in simple comfort.
In 1910, the first version of a Liberal Party was formed. This party had many names over the years, including the Nationalist Party and the United Australia Party. In 1944, the Liberal Party as we know it today was founded by Robert Menzies, who went on to become Australia’s longest serving Prime Minister.
After World War I, the Country Party was formed to advance the cause of farmers. It is now known as the National Party, and usually acts in coalition with the Liberal Party.
From Australian Citizenship: Our Common Bond, the official booklet