Accommodation Australia (National) is the peak industry employer body representing all sectors of tourism accommodation businesses in Australia. The long list of precursor entities that came together is explained in the History section below.
Members comprise accommodation providers ranging from small regional motels, serviced apartments, timeshare properties, bed & breakfasts, pubs with substantial accommodation offerings, to large individual hotels and the hotels operated by international groups including for example Accor, Hilton, Wyndham, Hyatt, IHG, TFE, Quest and Mariott. Local group operators are also well represented and as of 1 July 2023 initial membership of the amalgamated exceeded 120,000 rooms over approximately 1700 properties across Australia in all States and Territories.
AA exists to provide support to owners and managers of accommodation properties and to ensure all levels of government understand the importance of the sector to the economic wellbeing of Australia. The national diverse membership ensures our single voice as an advocate for the whole industry is truly representative and well heard by all levels of government.
The objects of Accommodation Australia (National) [set out in Rule 48] shall be:
- To advance and protect the industrial and commercial interests of its members in the accommodation and tourism sectors of the hotel industry (“the industry sectors”) throughout Australia;
- To act as an advocate for the industrial and commercial interests of its members in the industry sectors;
- To represent its members in all forums anywhere in Australia that affect or may affect their interests, including but not limited to Parliaments, governments and regulatory agencies;
- To work in close consultation with the officers of the Australian Hotels Association, both at Branch and National level, in relation to all matters of common interest to the members of Accommodation Australia (National) and the other members of the Australian Hotels Association;
- To encourage business and corporate groups or associations who participate in the industry sectors to affiliate with the Australian Hotels Association through Accommodation Australia (National), and to foster close co operation and liaison between those bodies and Accommodation Australia (National); and
- To take all such action and do all such things as may be conducive to the achievement of the foregoing objects.
AA was created by the amalgamation on 1st July 2023 of the two Registered Organisations of the Australian Hotel Association (“AHA”) and the Accommodation Association of Australia (“AAoA”) into the National Accommodation Division of the AHA and became known as Accommodation Australia (National).
Tourism Accommodation Australia (“TAA”) was an internal accommodation representative body inside the AHA and was an unincorporated committee structure funded by AHA. This structure came to an end on 30th June 2023 on amalgamation.
AAoA started life back in 1967 as an incorporated association in Queensland (The Queensland Motel Association Inc) with an affiliated industrial registered organisation called the Motor Inn and Motel Association (“MIMA”) in NSW. Over the years the various non AHA affiliated State incorporated associations combined to form a single Hotel and Motel Association Inc (“HMAA”) which finally changed its name to Accommodation Association of Australia Inc (“AAoA Inc”).
MIMA continued as a Registered Organisation but changed its name to Accommodation Association of Australia and continued as a separate Registered Organisation to which all AAoA Inc members also belonged. In 2022 the members of AAoA Inc, voted to wind up and transfer their net surplus to the AAoA Registered Organisation.
After a lengthy negotiation process involving structural rule changes to create a largely autonomous division with its own Board and separate finances, applications were made by AHA (TAA) and AAoA to amalgamate and following a secret postal ballot of all AAoA members in February 2023 the Fair Work Commission ordered amalgamation to take place on 1 July 2023. AAoA brought its net assets in to the new amalgamated AA as seed capital and the AHA State Branches provided an ongoing capitation fee income stream from the enlarged accommodation membership base in each State.
The first Board of AA was appointed for two years only by selection of key representatives of the amalgamating bodies but in future the normal process of three yearly elections will allow any member of State accommodation committees to nominate and stand to serve on the Board and provide guidance and governance to the CEO and team.