In a clear indication that the recent rash of underpayment disclosures by large companies has not gone unnoticed, Prime Minister Scott Morrison has told a business audience that his government hopes to reduce the current compliance regime's "administrative clutter".
The Federal Court has rejected a bid by the FWO and CFMMEU to upset a major labour hire company's treatment of workers as independent contractors, finding the service agreement signed by the parties transparently spelt out the true nature of their relationship.
A NSW IRC full bench has in making equal remuneration orders delivering a 11% rise for education support workers called on governments to ensure worthy such cases are argued, rather than rely on unions "funded by a declining member base".
Queensland Catholic school teachers are implementing work bans, their NSW counterparts have endorsed a novel measure to guarantee daily work for casuals and the employees of a Catholic school office are stopping work to fight for assurances on agreement coverage.
The Law Institute of Victoria has voiced its support for expanding the Legal Services Award to include early-career lawyers in private practice, but concedes that setting a minimum salary could lead to a "race to the bottom".
A meatworker is suing his employer for more than $125,000 as part of an adverse action claim that it took him off knife-work and reduced his position because he sought to recoup years of alleged underpayments.
In the latest stage of a long battle by power and mining unions against the approval of a "small cohort" non-union agreement for maintenance employees, the FWC has given Mechanical Maintenance Solutions Pty Ltd a chance to provide an undertaking to overcome its failure to ensure the deal was genuinely agreed.
The Fair Work Ombudsman will seek special leave from the High Court to appeal a full Federal Court ruling on whether hundreds of casual mushroom workers on non-compliant piecework agreements are entitled by default to be paid hourly rates under the horticultural award.
A major employer has failed to apply the correct award in seeking approval for a new enterprise agreement covering two businesses, the FWC noting an HR manager involved in bargaining had "little to no knowledge" of the work performed by employees.
The CFMMEU has been refused permission to appeal the approval of a labour hire company's deal on the basis the black coal award incorporated in the predecessor agreement did not allow for casual production and engineering workers, a majority FWC bench finding it possible the provision's absence was "simply overlooked" by the employer.
