FSU legally represented in banking royal commission; "No end date" comment spurs on-hire dismissal claim; Company's "secret" to closing gender pay gap; Disputes at decade-long low; and surprising lift in US private sector union membership.
In a decision where the employer's case was embarrassingly "scuttled" by its own witness, a senior FWC member has found that Ausgrid failed to inform four safety specialists during job interviews that they wouldn't be receiving an allowance due to them under the relevant agreement.
The Fair Work Commission has reserved its decision on whether to permit an appeal against the approval of the CFMEU's merger with the MUA and the TCFU, employer groups signalling their challenge wouldn't end there if refused.
In a significant decision on multi-hiring arrangements, a court has ruled that an Australia Post employee holding two "separate and distinct" part-time positions could not base overtime and other entitlements on combined hours.
The Fair Work Commission has sought to better delineate the law around so-called constructive dismissals, in a case in which it lambasted a multinational company's HR department for overseeing a process it likened to "entrapment".
In a novel decision on the need to consider alternative duties for incapacitated workers, the FWC has found an agreement clause requiring directions to be reasonable trumped BHP Coal's common law right to refuse to allow a mineworker to perform only part of his job.
The Fair Work Ombudsman has called for ASIC-style powers to ask a court to disqualify "repeat offenders" from running companies and avoiding backpay and penalties through phoenix company activity.
The FWC has observed it is "not necessary" to consider whether representation creates unfairness between parties, as a French company was granted permission to engage a lawyer to defend a self-represented employee's unfair dismissal claim.
