A recent Ai Group staff party in Adelaide marked South Australia’s second celebration of our 150th anniversary this year.
Ai Group Head of South Australia Estha van der Linden said it was fitting to celebrate the significant milestone in style with “an amazing bunch of people”.
“The Australian Industry Group has existed for one and a half centuries for many reasons such as values, non-partisanship and strong relationships but, most importantly, because of the passion and dedication of our staff,” she added.
The party followed a more formal event earlier this year, hosted by former Ai Group SA Head (now Chief Operating Officer) Jodie van Deventer.
That celebration, also in Adelaide and combined with an ‘Industry Meets North Terrace’ event, was attended by special guests including Ai Group Chief Executive Innes Willox, Premier Peter Malinauskas (pictured below with Jodie, Estha and Innes), Shadow Assistant Minister to the Leader of the Opposition Jack Batty and members.
Ai Group has proudly supported Australian industry for 150 years.
Its foundations were laid in December 1873 with the establishment of the Iron Trades Employers' Association in Sydney as a response to the formation of the first trade unions in Australia.
A series of state-based Ai Group celebrations have been held around the country and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Opposition Leader Peter Dutton attended our national 150th gala dinner at Melbourne Town Hall in August.
At that celebration, Mr Albanese acknowledged the evening was an anniversary of "truly national significance", adding: "It's important that both sides of politics show our support for The Australian Industry Group".
In his address, Mr Dutton paid tribute to Ai Group members for contributing to "150 years of success" and honoured Mr Willox for his leadership over the past 11 years.
Wendy Larter is Communications Manager at the Australian Industry Group. She has more than 20 years’ experience as a reporter, features writer, contributor and sub-editor for newspapers and magazines including The Courier-Mail in Brisbane and Metro, the News of the World, The Times and Elle in the UK.
