FWC bench to hear bid to overturn Coles deal approval; Heydon not planning to recall Shorten, but Howes set to appear; Ballot gets the go-ahead despite employer objections; Queensland FIFO report recommends workforce, accommodation laws; High Court confirms role of hindsight in determining injury claims; and Employers, unions decry threats to freedom of association.
Unions have given notice of a protected 24-hour strike at Chevron's Gorgon LNG project this Friday, followed by shorter stoppages over two days next week.
The oil and gas giant Chevron is braced for legally protected strikes at its $US54 billion Gorgon LNG project in Western Australia as construction workers seek "family friendly" fly-in, fly-out rosters.
The RTBU has called off a planned four-hour strike on Melbourne's passenger trains this Friday along with two "free travel" days this week, to allow for further negotiations starting this morning.
Four unions today started protected industrial action at the Melbourne-based plasma and vaccines manufacturer CSL Ltd, on the same day it announced a $US1.4 billion net profit.
The TWU's NSW branch and Star Track Express have been wrangling in the Fair Work Commission over a protected action ballot order which the company says is about a "turf war" bid to cut out the CEPU and deprive its members of benefits under a new enterprise deal.
The AWU faces a substantial damages bill after the Federal Court ruled today that the union took adverse action against Esso Australia when its members undertook unprotected industrial action in March, including using the action to coerce Esso into changing its bargaining position.
The Fair Work Commission has approved a protected action ballot at the Gorgon LNG project's biggest contractor, CB&I, raising the possibility of protected strikes as the already delayed project nears completion.
The massive $54 billion Gorgon LNG project could gain an assurance of industrial peace for the largest part of its workforce, if workers employed by one of its major contractors accept a new FWC-brokered enterprise deal with fewer working days in each roster cycle.
The Australian Shipowners Association has told the Productivity Commission that it is important to understand that the starting point for the bargaining changes it is seeking is the "disproportionate industrial power" wielded by the maritime unions.
