ABSTRACT
Australia’s third sector encompasses a vast range of organisations. ‘Association’ is mostly used by nonprofits representing various interests, such as business, trade or professional bodies. It is one of the specialised legal terms used to describe nonprofit organisations. The oldest third sector organisations in Australia are the churches. Most third sector organisations operate from the kitchen table of whoever is their most active member. Larger third sector organisations employ people to do most or all of their work. In June 1996, there were over 34 000 third sector organisations that were employers, employing just over 630 000 people, an equivalent of 460 000 full-time employees. Most third sector organisations sponsored by the churches or by religious orders are governed by appointed boards. The law offers groups of people who wish to form, or who have formed, an organisation the opportunity to obtain a legal identity, or personality, for that organisation.
