The FWC is set to make a same-job, same-pay order covering on-hire casual de-stuffers at an Aldi distribution centre that will see their 25% loading and any allowances paid on top of a "loaded" base rate paid to permanent workers.
A former FWO chief counsel-turned judge has taken an axe to the workplace regulator's belief in penalties as a general deterrent, expressing astonishment at its "staggering" pursuit of a $21,000 fine against an employer who quickly coughed up a $976 underpayment once a junior worker provided proof of their age.
As thousands of early childhood education and care workers prepare to walk out over feared pay cuts of between 4% and 15% when their taxpayer-funded retention scheme expires in November, the federal minister responsible is declining to provide certainty on the government's future intentions.
New ACTU pitch for vehicle allowances; Delayed CPI move for expense-related allowances; Further reporting extension for WFH inquiry; and Labour law conference seeking papers.
The Ai Group is asking the FWC's expert panel to restrict pay rises for minimum wage and award-reliant workers to an inflation-lagging 3.9%, branding the ACTU's revised claim for a 6% increase "reckless".
The ACTU has upped the pay rise it is seeking in the annual wage review from 5% to 6% in response to inflationary pressures flowing from the Middle East war.
Growth in private sector rates of pay excluding bonuses has eased to 3.2% a year in trend terms, well below the 4.6% rise in consumer prices fuelled by the Middle East war, according to new ABS data.
In a significant decision on the meaning of "full rate of pay" under same-job, same-pay laws and the FWC's powers to arbitrate related disputes, a Commission full bench has found that a big mining company must count service prior to SJSP orders when determining on-hire workers' classifications.
In a case testing the extent to which employers can withhold pay during protected industrial action, the Federal Court today conducted a hearing into the AWU's claim that Chevron unlawfully deducted loading and allowances from workers during stoppages at its WA facilities.
Mining unions have asked Fortescue to begin bargaining for replacement deals for two barebones non-union agreements covering iron ore workers at four Pilbara sites.
