Further changes were made to the Court in 1947 to increase the role of the Commissioners, leaving the judges to conduct the judicial work, and a select few matters of arbitration including the basic wage and the minimum wage for women.

The Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Commission was created in 1956 to carry out the non-judicial functions.

Higgins, which introduced the concept of the living wage into Australian industrial relations.

[10] The Court also decided cases setting the standard working week in Australia.

In 1947, the Court reduced the working week to 40 hours in a case that took two years to hear.