Honouring one of its election commitments, the Victorian Labor Government will today introduce legislation to abolish the former Coalition Government's anti-picketing laws.
The Fair Work Commission has ruled that it has no jurisdiction to impose conditions on industrial action when it orders a protected action ballot, rejecting Aurizon's bid for it to require the rail union to guarantee it won't interfere with the transport of perishable or hazardous goods.
Coles meatworkers in Victoria and Tasmania were entitled to vote to take protected industrial action because they had been genuinely seeking separate enterprise agreements late last year, a FWC full bench has ruled.
NSW power unions are pushing for a job security clause to cover thousands of workers at the state's two biggest "poles and wires" network businesses, which have been earmarked for privatisation if the Coalition is returned in March.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's secondary boycott case against the CFMEU construction and general division's Victorian branch has been set down for a six-week trial in September next year.
The Fair Work Commission will hold a rare Sunday hearing this weekend after issuing an interim order stopping the MUA from taking protected industrial action against the offshore oil and gas marine contractor, Farstad.
Tasmania's Legislative Council has passed a Government bill designed to curtail rights to engage in workplace-disrupting pickets and protests, but only after removing mandatory jail terms for repeat offenders.
The MUA has given notice of four consecutive 24-hour stoppages at the marine contractor Farstad from November 15, in the latest development in enterprise bargaining involving vessel operators servicing the offshore oil and gas sector.
In an important ruling on the definition of industrial action, the Federal Court has held that the provision of sensitive information to the media by employees is not "protected" under the Fair Work Act and might leave them vulnerable to breach of contract and coercion claims.
