Morning sickness justifies extending time; Legal representation granted in drug test dismissal case; Constructive dismissal by phone justified after vehicle log book failure; Refusal to accept a large settlement not unreasonable, says FWC; and "Informal chat" insufficient consultation for horse trainer redundancy.
FWC Vice President Michael Lawler has used a secretly-recorded phone conversation with tribunal president Iain Ross to challenge his claim that he never said the besieged member had an unlimited entitlement to sick leave.
An FWC full bench has upheld a decision to grant an entry permit to CFMEU construction and general division Queensland branch secretary Michael Ravbar, and dismissed the FWBC’s arguments that he was vicariously liable for the behaviour of other union officials as "riddled with unsubstantiated hyperbole".
The Turnbull Government will appoint an independent investigator to inquire into complaints about the conduct of FWC Vice President Michael Lawler, Workplace Relations Minister Michaelia Cash announced this morning.
The Fair Work Commission will engage an external "plain language expert" to redraft the Pharmacy Award before it is user-tested in a pilot as part of the tribunal's four-yearly review of modern awards.
The Fair Work Commission has hit back at Productivity Commission criticism, with its President, Iain Ross, saying that the PC's IR inquiry findings appear to reflect a "misunderstanding of [the] Commission's statutory role and functions".
Lawyers have told the Productivity Commission that its proposals to end tenure for new FWC appointees and to subject members to performance reviews would undermine the umpire's independence, while raising concern about a suggestion that only non-lawyers should determine matters in the proposed minimum standards division.
7-Eleven will settle all underpayment claims and won’t apply any time limits, in the wake of allegations that franchisees systematically exploited employees, company chair Russell Withers has told a Senate inquiry.
A full bench of the federal court has confirmed that terms in modern awards that provide allowances for hardships experienced by employees working in certain remote locations are not extinguished by the Fair Work Act.