FWC President Iain Ross has agreed to consider IR Minister Christian Porter's request that he insert loaded rates into awards for "distressed" industries and will convene initial conferences next week.
Virgin Australia will unilaterally seek support from its flight crew for a new enterprise deal, after failing to secure backing from its two pilot unions, while agreements for the remainder of the workforce have received the blessing of unions as the best they could achieve to get the relaunched airline back aloft.
A majority of workers at the revamped Virgin Australia have agreed to a pay freeze for up to two years under new enterprise agreements negotiated between aviation unions and the airline's management.
Labour costs have now dropped by more than 9% in the past year, while working hours have started to recover, according to ABS statistics released this morning that measure more than six months of the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.
Working from home is here to stay and will be "more effective for all" if it is supported by formal policies, hours are "relatively fixed hours" and it is voluntary, according to one of two university studies commissioned by the FWC as it considers inserting a WFH clause in the clerks award.
A full Federal Court has confirmed that 150 workers were entitled to be paid for the 20-minute bus ride to a major energy project's security gate at the end of each shift, after one of the judges rejected a request to recuse himself because he had acted for the employer during negotiations for the deal at the heart of the dispute.
The FWC has warned employers against using Facebook Messenger to communicate with employees, in a ruling on the sacking of a casual who refused to work her JobKeeper hours.
The CFMMEU construction and general division's NSW branch has warned sub-contractors that have signed its new pattern agreement they face being reported to the ABCC unless they switch to a nine-day fortnight from December 1.
The FWC has used the further extension of COVID-19-related flexibilities in the clerks award to advance its campaign for enduring changes in working-from-home arrangements, calling on employers and unions to report back on possible variations to address the issue by early next month.