Non-union collective deals still cover only 9% of employees, and AWAs 1.7%, according to a report tabled this week by Workplace Relations Minister, Tony Abbott.
The 160 mineworkers made redundant when the Woodlawn mine in NSW went out of business four years ago have moved closer to receiving nearly $5m in outstanding entitlements, following approval yesterday for the final step in converting the mine into a tip.
The NSW IRC has highlighted the importance of employers informing workers about their maternity leave entitlements, in a ruling that found a woman was unfairly dismissed when she did not return to work after giving birth.
In a move the CFMEU (mining & energy division) maintains is an attempt to "knock over Emwest", Workplace Relations Minister Tony Abbott is seeking to refer to a full bench of the Federal Court the union's bid to win increased breaks for workers at a Hunter Valley coal mine.
In a ruling that is instructive on balancing employees' caring responsibilities with business needs, the IRC has found that listed healthcare company CSL Limited showed "sheer bloody-mindedness" in its approach to setting hours for a female employee who needed to finish early to pick up her child.
ACTU president Sharan Burrow this morning used the "trauma and tears" of Hilton Hotel workers to illustrate the need for improved redundancy provisions at the official launch of the peak union body's redundancy test case.
The Australian Law Reform Commission has recommended important changes to anti-discrimination laws to protect employees from misuse of genetic information by employers.
The NSW IRC has compensated a worker who was dismissed because of her husband's misconduct, ruling that "the sins of one cannot possibly be visited upon another".
Wage increases in private sector enterprise agreements moderated significantly in the June quarter, dropping to 3.2% a year per employee from 3.6% in March, largely because of big retail agreements that paid relatively small increases, according to the DEWR.
