Two landmark class actions allege that a BHP Billiton subsidiary induced two labour hire companies to unlawfully engage hundreds of coal mineworkers as casuals and pay them less than the industry award.
The FWC has today rejected union arguments that a pallet service centre's agreement setting wages for "any person engaged to perform work" extends to labour hire workers.
The Fair Work Commission is missing its internal deadlines for approving enterprise agreements as it copes with an increasing number of complex deals that might need undertakings.
In a decision where the employer's case was embarrassingly "scuttled" by its own witness, a senior FWC member has found that Ausgrid failed to inform four safety specialists during job interviews that they wouldn't be receiving an allowance due to them under the relevant agreement.
Employers are not automatically entitled to reduce roster allowances when working hours fall below an agreement's "indicative" threshold, a court has found.
In a decision that United Voice says will make it harder for low-paid workers to be classified as award free, an FWC full bench has found that animal attendants and supervisors covered by a Queensland pet resort agreement should have been assessed against the Miscellaneous Award.
The Federal Court has tossed out a challenge to an FWC full bench decision, describing confidence in the administration of justice as a "significant factor" in finding Energy Australia's case an abuse of process.
