In a major development in the Pilbara that is inflaming inter-union rivalries, Rio Tinto companies Hamersley Iron and Robe River are in the final stages of negotiating a federal consent award with the AWU.
In a decision clarifying when the AIRC should cease dealing with disputes where employees are covered by State awards of agreements, the AIRC has rejected arguments by Smith's Snackfood Company that it should bow out before a dispute finding is made.
Massive OHS fine for Abigroup; Survey says wage growth to decline to 3.75% in the 2003-04 financial year; Employers slow to adopt formal anti-bullying policies; and CFMEU's Brian Miller dies.
Only one in every three solicitors or barristers employed by law firms are women, while employment in law firms has grown by 18% in the past three years, according to the ABS.
Workers at the Electrolux fridge and freezer manufacturing site at Orange (NSW) have narrowly rejected a s170LJ agreement that sought to introduce new seasonal working hours patterns.
Car components manufacturer FMP Group Australia (formerly Bendix Mintex) has locked out its Ballarat factory workforce for a month in retaliation for unions imposing bans the company says would have halted production.
Stevedoring and shipping employers face a push for greater job security and the MUA looks set for a shake-up, after militant challengers appear to have won key union leadership positions in three states.
Professional rugby league players will be the first sport to have a dedicated union registered under the Workplace Relations Act, if the AIRC approves an application gazetted today.
An AIRC full bench has made it clear that the public interest test for terminating AWAs doesn't extend to considering the risk of employees losing money by reverting to another industrial instrument, saying that by doing so the Commission would be "nothing but paternalistic".
The ACTU will push for a UK-style right for parents to request a change in their hours or working arrangements to accommodate their caring responsibilities, when it lodges its work and family test case with the AIRC today.
