Employer denied natural justice over late agreement: Bench; FWC upholds Coles' harassment sacking; Victorian gig economy inquiry extends submission deadline; and half million dollar safety fine for Patrick over threats to workers.
After providing $150,000 to settle an underpayments claim brought by five fruit pickers last year, labour hire company Agri Labour Australia is facing a new claim from 26 seasonal workers alleging they were short-paid more than $200,000.
An FWC full bench has upheld a finding that Victoria Police lacked reasonable business grounds to refuse a long-serving detective's request, under a "right to flexible working arrangements" clause, for extra rest days as he makes a transition to retirement.
A near five-year-old bargaining dispute involving Esso Australia's Bass Strait offshore oil and gas workers has "no immediate prospect" of being resolved, the FWC has heard.
RAFFWU has not given up on its push for a $1 billion backpay claim for Woolworths workers, lodging an appeal this week against the retailer's new national agreement, while the FWC says a successful bid by rival retail union the SDA to axe 30 nominally expired Pizza Hut deals will have an "overwhelmingly positive" effect.
The FWC has issued majority support determinations requiring two major engineering companies to bargain with CEPU members on the Ichthys LNG project, despite the employers' protests that work will be complete before any agreement could be reached.
The failure of a construction company's HR team to adequately explain two proposed "baseline agreements" or provide access to relevant awards has proven fatal to their approval, the FWC finding that other issues of non-compliance could have been dealt with by undertakings.
Thousands of retail and hospitality workers sitting on lower-paying "zombie" deals will revert to their respective awards from early March after the FWC terminated a 2007 agreement for Justin Hemmes' Merivale hospitality company and a 2011 Specialty Fashion Group deal.
An FWC full bench has issued guidance for the approval of enterprise agreements containing minor errors, finding that employers can give as little as four days' notice of voting and alter the text on template forms as long as workers are not disadvantaged.
The FWC has rejected a contentious MFB agreement because of terms that hinder workers shifting to part-time employment and permit the United Firefighters Union to block flexible working arrangements, but it has left the door open for the deal's approval with undertakings.
