Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service

OBS: ACAS's story begins over a hundred years ago when the government set up a voluntary conciliation and arbitration service in 1896. Apart from a name change or two - to the Industrial Relations Service in 1960 and a Conciliation and Advisory Service in 1972 - the basic services was much the same and remained firmly under the government's wing. Then in 1974 the modern organization was born. Renamed the Conciliation and Arbitration Service it was moved away from the government and set up with an independent council to direct it. ""Advisory"" was added to the name in 1975 to reflect the full range of services on offer.