Employers opposing the merger of the CFMEU, MUA and TCFU have warned the FWC that the unions would use their combined might to cripple the resource and construction industries, but they argue that in any case more than 45 pending penalty proceedings should legally disqualify them from amalgamating.
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.
Time is running out for the Turnbull Government to pass its Bill to impose a public interest test on union mergers before the FWC considers green-lighting the CFMEU, MUA and TCFU amalgamation, with the tribunal planning to conduct a hearing in early February.
The ballots of MUA and TCFU members to determine whether they support amalgamation with the CFMEU closed today with a high turnout for an internal union vote.
The High Court has reserved judgment after this week hearing regional airline Rex's challenge to a union's entitlement to represent the industrial interests of eligible non-members as it pursues an adverse action claim on behalf of cadet pilots and prospective employees.
An FWC full bench has found it "reasonably arguable" that Coles should have known a 2014 agreement negotiated with the SDA could not satisfy the BOOT when it applied for Commission approval.
The FWC has ordered a new organisation for workers employed by Korean businesses to disclose its membership list to employer associations and unions opposing its expanding application for registration as a union.
The Australian Mines and Metals Association has objected to a proposed rule change by the MUA that would extend its coverage to a wider range of occupations within port authorities.
