Back in October, Workplace Review invited readers to guess who the December interview would feature, based on the following clues:

"... one of Australia’s leading industrial law academics. He was fortunate to study under Paul Davies and Mark Freidland while at Oxford University, where Industrial Law was taught as a political subject and not just a body of rules."

And as our subscribers will discover, it was Professor Andrew Stewart of the University of Adelaide who spoke with Workplace Review's Azadeh Khalilizadeh this month.

Andrew Stewart's Oxford University experience made him aware of the way that IR law and policy can be used as a tool for political change. The combination of the political with IR's personal dimension - given that "most people work" - has always been attractive for him.

A visit to Australia after university convinced Andrew that this was a "wonderful place" where a "new life" could be made. With that new life has come the busy combination of academic and consultancy work for which Andrew has become known. His professional life is guided by his strong personal belief that

"one of the most important things academics can do is to use their expertise to explain and analyse issues and developments for the benefit of a broader audience.”

Work Choices and Fair Work seem not to have exhausted Andrew's capacity for law change, as subscribers will appreciate when they see his list of ongoing IR concerns. We look forward to benefiting from his expertise in these matters - and perhaps even catching him playing lead guitar in his covers band - for many political cycles to come.

The next issue of Workplace Review (Vol 2-1) publishes in March next year, featuring an interview with a Parliamentarian who has a crucial role in Australia's industrial relations system, laws and policy.

Who do you think that might be?

To find out, to see his/her portrait by artist Simon Fieldhouse, and for ongoing access to this unique publication, subscribe now to Workplace Review by visiting the Thomson Reuters estore.

To contribute to Workplace Review, see the Thomson Reuters website for more details or email lta.workplace@thomsonreuters.com.

A version of this post first appeared on Thomson Reuter’s Workplace: Fair Work portal, December 10, 2010.