In a decision that could have employers re-thinking standard travel and hours terms in agreements, the Federal Court has found in favour of a CFMMEU-backed class action that argued workers should be paid for transit time between security gates and their worksite.
An FWC full bench has rejected IR Minister Christian Porter's bid to review an already-approved agreement on the basis that it contains discriminatory terms, while it has allowed changes "entirely disposing" of any lingering ambiguities.
The Federal Court has fined Airservices Australia for consciously failing to consult workers before forcing them to take leave during a Christmas/New Year shutdown period, observing there was "no point" in doing so once they returned to work.
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.
A wood mill operator does not have to pay its former workforce for a five-week stand-down period after an FWC full bench confirmed that the time lost was due to damaged machinery, rather than the bushfires that rendered it inoperative in the first place.
The FWC has prevented a large employer from varying an agreement after its HR manager failed to fully address concerns the amendment could remove some employees from coverage without their knowledge.
In a significant decision on the nature of work, the FWC has ruled that employees required to attend a worksite assembly point by a prescribed time before being transported to a pre-start meeting should be paid for the intervening period.
Employers relying on the General Construction Award might have to start paying thousands of civil construction workers overtime instead of shift penalties, after the FWC held that shiftwork rates only apply if they continue the work of others on the same project, for the same client and contract.
The Federal Court has restrained the manufacturer of Vegemite jars and CUB beer bottles from deploying its managers to perform the work of striking maintenance workers while it determines union claims that the strategy constitutes adverse action and a breach of its agreement.
The ANZ Bank has failed to overturn a decision blocking it from relocating an arthritic 68-year-old teller to a more distant branch, an FWC full bench finding that the issues raised were too narrow to enliven the public interest.
