The Federal Circuit Court has slugged an employer more than $120,000 for swindling a young plumbing apprentice to the tune of $26,882 in wages over a three-month period. Judge Grant Riethmuller said the employer's behaviour was “an outrageous exploitation of a young person”. The case involved Victorian business Pulis Professional Plumbi...
Outrageous exploitation of apprentice: employer slugged $120k
↧
↧
Judge warns courts will take employee word when no timesheets
A Federal Court judge has warned employers to be mindful of recent Fair Work Act changes whereby the courts will now take the word of employees on hours worked if the employer doesn't have records to disprove the claim. Judge Grant Riethmuller issued the caution in a case involving a plumbing business rorting a second-year business of more than $26...
↧
High Court rules FW Act s540 gives union rep rights for non-members
In a significant decision re-affirming the historical wide scope for trade unions workplace coverage, the High Court has ruled unions can represent non-members who haven't asked for help but are nonetheless covered by union eligibility rules. In a unanimous decision, Chief Justice Susan Kiefel and Justices Patrick Keane, Geoffrey Nettle, Michelle G...
↧
FWC Sydney out-of-action
At press time, the Fair Work Commission has revealed its Sydney office is experiencing technical difficulties due to external construction work that has damaged essential infrastructure. “We are currently unable to provide a timeframe for restoration of services.” It “has no telephone services, email or videoconferencing” bu...
↧
MUA has outsourced Webb Dock illegal picket: VSC
At presstime, Victoria International Container Terminals (VICT) said “nothing had changed” despite fresh injunctions being handed down yesterday against the maritime and construction unions, and Vic Trades Hall Congress secretary Luke Hilakari ( WF 12/12/17 ). “The situation remains unchanged,” VICT's spokesperson told Workf...
↧
↧
FWC to decide super union fate on February 2
Employer bodies look set to join the Federal Government in arguing against the proposed ‘super-union' merger between the building/mining, maritime and textiles unions, in a Fair Work Commission (FWC) hearing on February 2 ( WF 1/12/2017 ). With the govt's union-busting Ensuring Integrity Bill 2017 stuck in the Senate and parliament not due to...
↧
‘Arrogant' pollie and party penalised $80k+ after failing to pay workers
Peter Jones - the failed No Land Tax Party (NLT) candidate at the 2015 NSW election and its secretary - has been penalised $13,315 and the party a further $67,575 after the Federal Circuit Court found their failure to pay workers was deliberate. Judge Tom Altobelli slammed Jones for his “arrogant” attitude and lack of remorse following ...
↧
Parlt cannot have intended technical defect to bar access to justice: Ct
A sacked business analyst who misnamed her employer in a general protections claim has successfully appealed a lower court's refusal to hear the claim because of the error. Ordering the matter back to the Federal Circuit Court (FCC) to be heard, Federal Court Justice David O'Callaghan found nothing in s368 of the Fair Work Act preventing a court su...
↧
Blistering jobs growth streak rages with 61,600 created in November
Economic forecasts have been blown out of the water with figures released today showing 61,600 new jobs were created in November. The Australian Bureau of Statistics labour force November report said the increase comprised of 41,900 full-time and 19,700 part-time jobs. The ABS said full-time employment increased 41,900 to 8,501,900, and part-time e...
↧
↧
Blistering jobs growth streak rages with 61,600 created in November
Economic forecasts have been blown out of the water with figures released today showing 61,600 new jobs were created in November. The Australian Bureau of Statistics labour force November report said the increase comprised of 41,900 full-time and 19,700 part-time jobs. The ABS said full-time employment increased 41,900 to 8,501,900, and part-time e...
↧
Bench to decide fate of family-friendly work arrangements
WFD: A Fair Work Commission full bench was sitting in Sydney on Tuesday (December 12) on the first day of a six-day modern award hearing on whether to introduce new family-friendly work arrangements ( WF23/11/2017 ). Employers are strongly opposing the Australian Council of Trade Union's (ACTU) family friendly arrangements test case, which is seeki...
↧
Webb Dock injunctions against CFMEU and VTHC sec Hilakari
WFD: Shortly before presstime on Tuesday (December 12), Victoria International Container Terminals (VICT) obtained injunctions againstVic Trades Hall Congress secretary Luke Hilakari and the Construction Forestry Mining Energy Union (CFMEU). The injunctions are on top of ones already in place against the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA), including...
↧
Report says penalty rate cut failed to create new jobs
WFD: A new report has debunked employer arguments that a cut in penalty rates would create more jobs. The report - An Analysis of the Impact of Penalty Rate Cuts on National Growth Trends - is by the McKell Institute, a Labor-aligned think tank. It analyses the impact of the Fair Work Commission's decision in February to cut penalty rates for fast ...
↧
↧
WA govt workers fight job cuts
WFD: While the WA Government has chalked up a win in limiting pay increases to a $1,000 a year (see story, above) , public servants are less happy with proposed wide-scale job cuts to meet the state's budget blowout. Members feel betrayed On Tuesday (December 12), the Community Public Sector Union and Civil Service Association announced hundreds of...
↧
SA folds, WA holds and NT votes in public service pay battles
WFD: The South Australian Government has bowed to union pressure in a battle over public service pay, yesterday agreeing to pay rises of 2% and more a year for SA's 37,000 public servants ( WF 4/10/2017 ). Both SA and WA had promised to cap public service wages at1.5% a year or less, in response to budget blowouts in both states. WA held fast, with...
↧
VICT seeks Webb Dock injunction against Vic Trades Hall sec Hilakari
WFD: Victoria International Container Terminals (VICT) was in the Victorian Supreme Court seeking an injunction against Vic Trades Hall Congress secretary Luke Hilakari on Monday (December 11). Stuart Wood QC is representing VICT in a hearing that started at 3pm. VICT believes Hilakari played a central role in organising a massive protest at Webb D...
↧
MUA slams ‘campaign of lies'
WFD: MUA national deputy secretary Will Tracey accused VICT of running a “campaign of lies”. In a statement shortly before presstime, Tracey said the worker at the centre of the dispute (see above) was granted the required maritime security identification card MSIC security clearance on Friday (Dec 8). “The company can end this di...
↧
↧
Penalty regime ‘essential' in Modern Slavery Act, says unions
WFD: Unions say they will champion the need for a penalty regime in a Modern Slavery Act set to go to Federal Parliament for enactment early next year ( WF 8/09/2017 ). In a statement this morning (December 11),ACTUPresident Ged Kearney claimedearlyfeedbacksuggested the Coalition Government will not support a penalty regime when the legislation goe...
↧
No manners, so no hearing: cmn tosses out claim from tardy litigant
WFD: The Fair Work Commission has tossed out an application for an unfair dismissal remedy after a refrigeration industry worker repeatedly ignored dates for hearing the matter and told the cmn to “do your job and stop bothering me”. Shane Spencer sought a remedy after Emerald Refrigerated Logistics sacked him. The application was liste...
↧
Sacked safety officer fails to show enforcement not part of his duties
WFD: A safety officer sacked for not meeting the enforcement requirements of his job was not unfairly dismissed, the Fair Work Commission has found. Anthonie Nieberg was appealing his 2017 sacking by the Heran Building Group Pty Ltd, trading as Heran Building Group. Nieberg's unfair dismissal application to the cmn claimed his role was to advise th...
↧
More Pages to Explore .....
