In an important case on restructuring, Xstrata subsidiary Ulan Coal Mines has today told a full bench of FWA that there was "indisputable" evidence it had a labour surplus at its NSW underground operation when it dismissed 10 mineworkers last year, and that an earlier finding that the redundancies weren't genuine was wrong.
Virgin Blue subsidiary V Australia is using the IFA provision in the cabin crew modern award to roster flight attendants for longer than the 18-hour limit on extended shifts, in a move the FAAA is considering prosecuting as a potential award breach.
Employers, unions and the Federal Government today each urged a Fair Work Australia full bench to overturn a single member's decision that significantly limits the scope for individual flexibility arrangements, while the full bench cautioned employers against putting deals to a vote and then later challenging them.
Slow mail not employee's fault; Conciliator gave wrong advice on time limits; Ignorance and poor English excuse lateness; and FWO's "unreasonable" nine-day response
A HR services company that purported to make redundant a female manager who was returning from maternity leave should have redeployed her and retrenched another employee, a senior FWA member has ruled in rejecting the employer's bid to have her unfair dismissal bid thrown out.
Shadow IR Minister Senator Eric Abetz says employer groups are "disconnected" from micro-business owners and has pledged that the Coalition's IR policy will look after the sector. Meanwhile, sources say the party is considering going to the election promising to exempt only very small businesses from unfair dismissal.
ABC Commissioner John Lloyd has lamented the uncertainty for his organisation and the construction industry from Labor's attempts to change the BCII Act and criticised unions for failing to offer "even a modicum of support" for the ABCC, in his second speech in four years to the HR Nicholls Society.
The Federal Government has supported the bulk of the Productivity Commission's recommendations on executive pay - including its "two strikes" proposal - and will look at ways to "clawback" bonuses paid to executives and directors if they are based on misleading financial information.
