A Government-dominated federal parliamentary committee will consider the status of labour hire and independent contracting arrangements, in response to a request by Workplace Relations Minister Kevin Andrews, who promised during last year's election campaign to introduce an Independent Contractors Act.
A Barnett Government in WA will remodel the Gallop Government's individual contracts stream to make it "competitive" with AWAs if it is elected at the February 26 State poll.
More than 1,800 Harris Scarfe employees across three states will receive a pay increase of almost 11% over two years, under an enterprise deal the shop union claims "brings home the bacon" after wage restraint helped the retailer trade out of voluntary administration three years ago.
The Federal Government says it will introduce its Cole legislation into Parliament with "no changes at all", despite expectations from construction industry employers - who have been lobbying to make it more workable - that the bill would be amended.
National construction company Barclay Mowlem unlawfully refused to engage a contractor because it had non-union workers engaged under AWAs and a non-union agreement, the Federal Court has ruled.
A full bench of the AIRC has quashed a decision on the timing of wage increases paid under five Telstra enterprise agreements - which the CPSU at the time claimed was worth $1.8 million to employees.
In an important decision on post-Electrolux bargaining delivered just before Christmas, a full bench of the AIRC has found that salary sacrificing provisions in an agreement pertain to the employment relationship.
In the largest ever unfair contract payout ordered by the Queensland IRC, a small Queensland mining contractor has been awarded $414,250 after it went to the expense of buying a new drill on the promise of long-term work.