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The Federal Court has ordered a construction company to reinstate an electrician until it decides whether it took adverse action by sacking him within 10 days of his becoming a health and safety representative and reporting suspected asbestos in a water tunnel.

The Federal Circuit Court has ordered indemnity costs against two casual employees who refused offers to settle their adverse action and award breach cases for $10,000 and maintained their demands for $95,000 payouts.

The FWC has used new legislation permitting it to overlook minor technical or procedural errors in agreements to endorse an enterprise deal with a bargaining notice that failed to comply with the Act's pre-approval requirements.

The composition and role of the Fair Work Commission "must be re-examined" due to Coalition governments appointing 20 consecutive members from an employer background, according to an internal ACTU report.

Labor has pledged to immediately increase the minimum wage for skilled overseas visa workers to $65,000 - a rise of almost 21% - if it wins the Federal election

The AFP told two senior Coalition ministers that providing witness statements would "significantly assist" its investigation into media leaks about pending raids on the AWU in 2017.

One of Australia's largest employers has convinced the FWC that it should have access to external legal representation to defend its dismissal of a self-represented employee accused of stealing $400, because its in-house legal and HR personnel lack expertise in IR advocacy.

The private operator of Sydney's newest rail line has agreed to continue paying an RTBU delegate pending an expedited trial in July into allegations that it sacked him because he helped prepare for a majority support determination application, after the Federal Court today found serious questions to be tried.

The AWU claims to have arrested its membership losses, with a new back-office system recording a "modest" increase in numbers, but the ROC is growing impatient, accusing the union of lacking urgency and transparency in rectifying its reporting after it first raised issues about inaccurate data more than two-and-a-half years ago.

James Cook University is fighting back against a Federal Circuit Court finding that it unlawfully sacked an academic who criticised prominent climate research, while the NTEU has welcomed a finding that the institution's code of conduct is "subordinate" to an intellectual freedom clause in its agreement.