Unions will appeal an important ruling by a full bench majority of Fair Work Australia that appears to create new opportunities for employers to force bargaining representatives to jump through procedural hoops before taking industrial action.
States and Territories other than WA have this afternoon endorsed a model OHS Act, in a pivotal step towards national laws taking effect as planned on January 1, 2012.
The AiG’s view that the intergovernmental agreements underpinning the referral of state IR powers to Canberra will stymie any essential changes to the Fair Work Act "doesn’t have legs", according to University of Sydney Professor of Law, Ron McCallum.
Queensland and NSW have formally signed up to the Rudd Government's national IR system for the private sector ahead of the WRMC meeting in Melbourne today - one of NSW IR minister John Robertson's first acts in his new role.
Parent company the employer, court rules; FWA refuses union deal over lack of notification evidence; Surprise fall in jobless rate; and Buswell keeps report under wraps.
Employers must explain to their employees the differences between their current conditions and those that would apply under a proposed enterprise agreement as part of the pre-approval process, Fair Work Australia has ruled.
Xstrata has denied CFMEU claims it plans to use "strike-breakers" to load coal trains at its Tahmoor mine in an effort to undermine work bans imposed by the union as part of its 15-month bargaining dispute with the company.
A Federal Court full court has slashed by more than half a $115,000 penalty against the CFMEU (construction and general division) and one of its officials, removing from the books one of the largest fines imposed on the union under the BCII Act.
