ANTI-BULLYING – reasonable management action – s.789FD Fair Work Act 2009 – alleged bullying by employer in placing applicant on a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) – applicant claimed PIP was unwarranted as his performance was not deficient – Commission rejected contention of bullying – found that PIP was enacted in a genuine attempt to improve applicant’s performance – application dismissed. Blagojevic v AGL Macquarie P/L and Anor
June 1, 2018
CASE PROCEDURES – referral to Full Bench – ss.184, 185, 615, Fair Work Act 2009 – application by the Minister to have the application for the approval of the Metropolitan Fire and Emergency Services Board & United Firefighters Union Operation Staff Agreement 2016 (Agreement) referred to a Full Bench under s.615A of the FW Act – Collinsville Coal Operations P/L considered – Minster submitted that the Commission could not be satisfied that the agreement does not include any unlawful terms – Commission held that even if it cannot be satisfied that the Agreement does not contain unlawful terms by reason of the matters raised by the Minister, it would be open to the Commission to approve the Agreement pursuant to s.190 by accepting undertakings – held this operates to diminish the significance of the issues raised by the Minister – Commission considered that any issue about appropriate undertakings could more efficiently be deal with by a single member than a Full Bench – application rejected. Metropolitan Fire and Emergency Services Board
June 1, 2018
TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT – minimum employment period – associated entities – ss.22, 394 Fair Work Act 2009 – application for unfair dismissal remedy – respondent submitted applicant was previously employed by Combined Communications Group Ply Ltd (CCG) which was placed into administration in late 2017 – subsequent to CCG going into administration (but before its liquidation) the applicant was employed by respondent on or about 3 December 2017 – applicant dismissed by respondent on 2 February 2018 – respondent submitted that it and CCG are independent and separate entities and that the employment of the applicant cannot be characterised as continuous service – Commission found that respondent and CCG were not related bodies corporate – found minimum employment period not completed – application dismissed. Wilson v AMN Challenge P/L t/a AMN Challenge
June 1, 2018
TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT – Small Business Fair Dismissal Code – misconduct – s.394 Fair Work Act 2009 – application for unfair dismissal – applicant summarily dismissed allegation of serious misconduct including aggressive and demeaning behaviour – respondent was small business – Small Business Fair Dismissal Code considered – Commission satisfied respondent held reasonable belief that applicant’s conduct sufficiently serious to justify immediate dismissal – respondent conducted investigation and provided applicant opportunity to respond to allegations – Code complied with – application dismissed. Cachia v Scobel P/L atf the S & I Trust t/a Emerse Skin & Laser
June 1, 2018
TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT – identity of employer – ss.311, 394 Fair Work Act 2009 – application for relief from unfair dismissal – correct identity of the employer – whether second respondent true employer – no express contract between applicant and second respondent – no transfer of business – whether contract should be implied – no proper basis to infer new contract existed with second respondent – whether corporate veil should be lifted and the different corporate entities set aside to find second respondent true employer – based upon limited material before the Commission correct identity of the employer found to be first respondent – resignation – whether dismissal at initiative of first respondent – 5 week period of notice given by applicant – employer later intervened to terminate the employment immediately – intervening event constituted dismissal at initiative of employer – Commission found dismissal harsh, unjust and unreasonable – ordered compensation of $7,848. McCulloch v ACN 165 180 503 P/L t/a Blackwood Fitness; Forward Half P/L t/a Blackwood Fitness
May 30, 2018
The Fair Work Commission will today hear from twenty-three unfair dismissal/contract dispute applicants. The list is: Rocks Fins /n/ Grill (Dhelbai), YGNP Fire Pty Ltd (Kim), BagTrans Pty Limited (Sommers), Adept Inspections & Training Pty Ltd (Townsend), Marks Point Childcare Pty Ltd (Johnson), Q Hospital Group Pty Ltd (Lyons), Telstra Corporation Ltd (Malzenski), Uniting Church Australia Gateway Family Services (Ikin), Allianz Australia Services Pty Limited (Sindas), Pickles Schoolwear (Assaf), St George’s Basin Country Club Ltd (Johnson & Marr and Others), Carrum Downs Newsagency (Dinsdale), Buehler Aged Care Pty Ltd (D’Souza), UVision Australia Pty Ltd (Lusardo Velazco), Caulfield Grammar School (Mazzarella), Linfox Australia Pty Ltd (Paull & Chau and Others), Nyrstar Hobart Pty Ltd (Cowen), Transdev Queensland Pty Ltd (Guorgi), Southern Cross Protection Pty Ltd (Singh), The Loxton District Children’s Centre Inc (Mitchell), A-Style Skin Clinic (Poulton), Cape Australia Holdings Pty Ltd (Green).
May 29, 2018
Twenty-five unfair dismissal/labour dispute claimants will plead their cases in the Fair Work Commission today. The full list is: Rivalea Australia Pty Ltd (Craighead), SC St Vincent De Paul Society NSW (Ghanima), Poly Counts Pty Ltd (Nethercott), G & S Engineering Services Pty Ltd (Hicken), Woolworths Group Limited (Cavar), Steele Associates (Despot), Kids Out West (Nichol), Australian Pharmaceutical Industries Limited (Yazgan), Hyne & Son Pty Ltd (Egan), Cashrewards Pty Ltd (Peri), Boral Cement Ltd (Hawkins), Ngaruma & Yindjibarndi Foundation (Nestorovska), Australian Manpower Services (AMS), City of Kingston (Ayres), Country Fire Authority & Country Fire Authority (McCann), Myer Pty Ltd (George), Pohlmans Nursery (Lally), Core Staff Pty Ltd (Haddrick), Coles Supermarkets Aust Pty Ltd (Angelakos), Freedom Screens Brisbane (Breed), Curtain Wonderland (Rayner), Svitzer Australia Pty Ltd (Paparella), Camp Windamere Ltd (Syrianos), The Hills Christian Community School Inc (Kelly), Fleurieu Regional Waste Authority (Lundberg).
May 28, 2018
INDUSTRIAL ACTION – order against industrial action – s.418 Fair Work Act 2009 – application for order to stop industrial action by Variable Salary Employees at Port Botany – whether industrial action was agreed or authorised – DP World Sydney Enterprise Agreement 2015 had not yet passed its nominal expiry date – Commission concluded that industrial action linked to Labour Review dispute – given union’s involvement in Labour Review dispute, Commission found that union partook in organisation of industrial action – unprotected industrial action found to be happening, threatened and impending – unprotected industrial action must not occur and not be organised – order issued. DP World Sydney Limited v Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union and Ors
