An entry dispute at a Queensland textile plant has exposed subterranean tensions during the merger of the CFMEU, TCFU and MUA, raising concerns about possible internal coverage disputes in future.
Employer groups have failed in their bid to delay the March 27 CFMEU-MUA-TCFU amalgamation, but have taken solace from a senior FWC member's observation that their April 9 appeal to an FWC full bench "surmounts the fairly low bar of being arguable".
The Fair Work Commission has approved the merger of the CFMEU with the MUA and TCFU after rejecting employer arguments it should take account of the "significant" number of civil pecuniary proceedings penalty cases against them.
An Australia Post employee has failed in a Federal Court bid to win reinstatement after his summary dismissal for acting as a paid industrial advocate for his colleagues.
In an important ruling on out-of-hours conduct, the FWC has found that an employer didn't need to receive a complaint before investigating then sacking a worker for sharing a p--nographic video via social media with friends who included 19 male and female work colleagues.
The Federal Court has overturned a CEPU decision to strip a long-term delegate of her union roles, after finding that two officials who heard charges against her were "invincibly biased".
The High Court has confirmed that unions are entitled to run underpayment and other contravention cases for un-named classes of employees who are eligible for membership but are not members, paving the way for a pilots union to advance an adverse action claim on behalf of Regional Express cadets.
The FWC has suspended a CFMEU divisional branch leader's entry permit for three months after he raised his hand in a "solidarity symbol" at a senior project manager.
The FWC has allowed the Flight Attendants' Association to jettison plans to merge its two divisions, while a former secretary might face penalties after admitting he failed to provide budgets from 2006 to 2012.
