ENTERPRISE BARGAINING – protected action ballot – extension of notice period – ss.437, 443, 444 Fair Work Act 2009 – application for a protected action ballot order (PABO) – prior application involving same parties (B2016/947) discontinued and new application filed – current application differed from prior application in that four of the seven questions had been reworded and a different ballot agent was proposed – Murdoch objected to some of the questions to be put to the employees and submitted there were exceptional circumstances warranting a longer period of notice being given before some forms of the proposed industrial action was to be taken – employees who would be covered by the proposed agreement include nearly all the employees of Murdoch except for certain executive staff – Murdoch has 575 fixed term and continuous academic staff, 828 casual academic staff, 919 fixed term and continuous professional staff and 1060 casual professional staff – evidence given of instances in which three days would not give Murdoch enough time to respond to the industrial action with likely adverse consequences for students, staff and other third parties – if employees trained in first aid and workplace safety, or who are employed to perform security functions were to stop work the safety of students, staff or visitors to the campus may be impacted – stoppages of work by security staff could jeopardise the safety of students attending campus and hundreds of students living on campus – Commission satisfied the evidence of Murdoch demonstrated that some of the protected industrial action proposed if the ballot was supported would create risks to the health and safety of third parties including students, members of staff not members of the NTEIU and members of the public visiting Murdoch’s campus due to the security being disrupted – satisfied that appropriate defensive action could not be taken within the statutory three day period of notice to overcome these risks if security officers do not attend for work – PABO made – notice period extended for some forms of the proposed protected industrial action. National Tertiary Education Industry Union v Murdoch University
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