An employer has failed in a bid to fend off a protected action ballot order on the grounds that activities such as wearing campaign t-shirts and talking to the media are not industrial action, but the FWC has acknowledged there are "some risks" in including them on the ballot form.
An FWO report released hot on the heels of Caltex's announcement that it will exit franchising has revealed non-compliance at 76% of audited sites and accuses the oil giant of contributing to breaches by failing to put effective systems in place, despite warnings.
The federal government's efforts to rein in the ballooning costs of its FEG scheme have received a significant boost after an appeal court overturned a ruling that stripped it of priority status in seeking to recover almost $4 million paid to employees of a collapsed company.
In a landmark ruling, the Federal Court has found today that a Spotless subsidiary failed to meet its obligations under the NES to provide notice and severance pay to employees – some with 15 to 20 years service – when it lost a longstanding services contract at a major shopping complex.
Academic analysis has revealed that gender equality measures are helping to drive a $24,000 average boost to the pay of top-tier women managers, part-funded by a $4,000 decrease in the pay of their male counterparts, while the overall pay gap among full-time workers is unchanged.
The Federal Circuit Court has found a dental practice that entered into a sham contract to help an international student obtain a 457 visa breached multiple IR laws and underpaid her by almost $67,000, but compensation might be complicated by a finding that she was a party to the scam.
The Fair Work Ombudsman is frustrated it is failing to secure "any real commitment" from Caltex on a "compliance partnership" to handle underpayments by franchisees, despite being in talks for 18 months.
APS Commissioner John Lloyd has rejected claims that he breached the federal public service social media guidelines when he complained to staff of the Institute of Public Affairs via the APSC email system about comments by Labor Senator Penny Wong.
