The Federal Court has overturned an $800,000 costs order against the Fair Work Ombudsman, after finding that a Federal Circuit Court judge was wrong to find the watchdog's unreasonable acts or omissions partially responsible for two company directors incurring unreasonable legal expenses.
The Federal Court has refused to issue CFMEU organiser Drew MacDonald a certificate protecting him from self-incrimination in proceedings brought by the ABCC over alleged unprotected action.
A Senate inquiry's largely bipartisan support for the Turnbull Government's Protecting Vulnerable Workers Bill is a "striking indication" of how far the debate on the issue has advanced, according to Adelaide University Professor of Law, Andrew Stewart.
The Fair Work Ombudsman has dropped its prosecution of the MUA and seven seafarers, because the FWC's order for them to cease industrial action is likely to be invalid.
An accountancy firm that knowingly failed to maintain current award rates of pay in its MYOB payroll system has been found accessorially liable for an employer's underpayments.
Fair Work Ombudsman Natalie James says low penalties are creating a "perverse incentive" for a "dangerous minority" of employers to use inaccurate or incomplete records to conceal underpayments, forcing the watchdog to use novel, labour-intensive strategies to piece together employees' working hours.
A court has found a delegate liable as an accessory for adverse action after he stood by and failed to correct the record when an organiser told workers they would be removed from a construction site if they refused to join the union.
The new standalone regulator for registered organisations will start operating on Monday, May 1, with its new powers taking effect by the following day.
