An FWC full bench has accepted that Qantas was permitted to have a seconded Ashurst lawyer at the bar table during an unfair dismissal hearing, despite being denied external legal representation.
The CFMMEU has used the findings of a report examining international responses to collapsing industries to call for the establishment of a statutory body to support 8000 directly-employed workers impacted by the forecast closure of Australia's coal-fired power stations.
The CFMMEU and the mineworker at the centre of the full Federal Court's much-scrutinised recent decision on casual leave have sought leave to join the Federal IR Minister in intervening in what is seen as a test of the ruling's ambit.
The FWC will set a week of hearings at the end of February to hear a RAFFWU bid to quash Woolworths' nominally-expired 2012 deal before a newly voted-up replacement is approved, with the retailer and the SDA saying they need time to consult the rest of the workforce.
A new body should be established outside the FWO to exclusively address underpayments to temporary visa holders, argue the authors of a report which found that less than 2% of more than 2000 migrant workers surveyed successfully recouped all their unpaid wages through existing channels.
A Federal Labor government will consider allowing multi-employer bargaining, but will focus on low-paid workers such as cleaners and early childhood educators, according to shadow IR minister Brendan O'Connor.
The Registered Organisations Commission has agreed to hold off enforcing MUA reporting requirements until the Federal Court hears the union's claim that it should not have to file financial statements from 10 separate divisions due to its amalgamation with the CFMEU.
Unions are continuing to embrace affirmative action measures to increase women's participation and ensure leadership reflects membership, the FWC this week approving ASU rule changes requiring a woman to hold at least one of three new leadership positions.
