A Canberra contractor that blocked CFMEU officials from investigating safety issues has been hit with higher penalties after conceding that a judge mistakenly bundled obstruction and misrepresentation breaches together when determining fines.
Century-old Restaurant and Catering Australia has applied to register as an employer organisation in an apparent attempt to differentiate itself from a rival peak body established by major industry figures last year.
A senior FWC member has praised a "removed" former CFMEU construction division leader for answering national secretary Zach Smith's call to come out of retirement to take up a training role, granting him a certificate allowing him to return to work.
The HSU's Victorian No 1 branch will enter full administration and secretary Diana Asmar will leave her job, under in an in-principle agreement reached with the union's national executive, which it expects the Federal Court to approve on Monday.
A FWC presidential member has set out the extent to which he considers untested allegations should influence issuing of entry permits, while considering evidence that included CFMEU construction division administrator Mark Irving KC accusing a site manager of "play acting" in a confrontation with a union official captured on video.
In its first decision on whether to give "removed" CFMEU construction division officials the chance to pursue jobs at other unions, the FWC has cleared former Queensland branch assistant leader Kane Lowth to take up a part-time role with the ETU but stopped short of allowing him to hold office or represent it in bargaining.
The FWC has thrown out a UFU bid for dispute orders forcing Fire Rescue Victoria to "take sides" and reveal its role in a report to Victoria's Parliament that criticises an agreement clause requiring union consultation and "consensus" before implementing change.
Members of the CFMEU's manufacturing division have overwhelmingly voted in favour of separating their affairs from those of the broader union and creating the standalone Timber, Furnishing and Textiles Union.
In a significant judgment on the level of proof required to establish an unlawful boycott, a High Court majority has upheld a finding that the CFMEU's construction and general division did not collude with major building company J Hutchinson to freeze out a non-union waterproofing subcontractor.
