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Objective: Acute migraine is associated with significant personal, economic and work‐related disability. Management guidelines advise the use of simple analgesia, triptans, chlorpromazine and anti‐emetics based on severity, with avoidance of opioids. We aimed to determine consistency of prescribing patterns in our ED with national guidelines. Methods: We performed a retrospective cohort analysis of migraine presentations (ICD‐10‐AM G439) between 2012 and 2016. Exclusion criteria included migraine without headache, other primary headaches and secondary headaches. Demographic and prescribing data were extracted from medical records. Results have been reported as proportions. Results: Of 4769 headache presentations, the application of exclusion criteria led to a total of 744 patients who received a migraine diagnosis (G439). Most were female (558/744, 75%), young (mean age 36.4 years) and had a self‐reported migraine history (558/744, 75%). There were 54 different medications prescribed. Paracetamol was more frequently prescribed (385/744, 52%) than aspirin (134/744, 18%). Opioid prescription occurred in nearly half of all presentations (345/744, 46%). Similar opioid prescriptions were also observed in those with a documented history of migraines (253/558, 45%). A minority of patients received triptans (51/744, 7%). Overall, a quarter of patients (189/744, 25%) received no guideline‐recommended medications. Conclusion: We observed considerable polypharmacy in ED migraine management with inconsistent prescribing patterns. Recommended medications were infrequently used and opioid use was common. Factors influencing prescribing patterns require further investigation in order to improve rates of guideline recommended treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is the first study to focus on how unions affect the likelihood of plant closures in Australia. Australia is of special interest in this connection, the authors argue, because of its unique industrial relations institutions, which, at the time of the study (1990-95), limited the capacity of established unionized firms to remove unions except through plant closure. An analysis of Australian Workplace Industrial Relations Survey data shows that two of three measures of unionization had a robust positive influence on the probability of plant closure, and the third had a weaker positive influence. Depending on the specification, for example, a 10 percentage point increase in union density (one of the two measures found to have strong influence) was associated with a 1.3-1.7 percentage point increase in the probability of plant closure--representing a substantial increment, since the mean closure probability among these plants was about 16%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The factors affecting age of hiring are estimated using Australian establishment data. Lower ages of new hires are associated with training and with workplaces using steeper tenure–wage profiles. Lower ages of hires are associated with steeper profiles throughout the age of hire distribution, whereas lower ages of hires are associated with the provision of training only among younger hires. Moreover, the evidence confirms that larger employers are more likely to hire younger workers but that lower ages of hire continue to be associated with steeper tenure–wage profiles even among larger employers. The robust role of the tenure–wage profile suggests that it is too early to conclude, as some have, that specific training is the paramount reason for the reduced hiring prospects of the old. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents an examination of the incidence and importance of pay incentives among a sample of Australian establishments. Economics of personnel and strategic choice; Effects of monitoring, job security and industrial relations climate; Analysis of data from the Australian Workplace Industry Relations Survey (AWIRS).