EXPANDED NEW CAPACITIES
for third
parties to intervene in damaging strikes will
become a mainstay of Australia’s workplace
relations system, after crossbench senators
including those of the Palmer United Party
voted with the government to defeat the
Greens on the issue.
With Labor’s backing, the Greens’ raised
a Senate disallowance motion that would
have undone the new powers to seek relief
from forthcoming strikes, implemented by
the Australian Government in June.
The new regulation enables any
third party that would be significantly
impacted by forthcoming protected
industrial action to have their case heard
by the Fair Work Commission as part of
an application for the strike to be pre-
NEW POWERS TO STOP
strikes here to stay
emptively suspended or terminated.
For the resource industry, this important
change now allows major project operators
to potentially intervene in damaging strike
action taking place along its supply chain.
Another significant outcome of the
regulation was to enable Western
Australia, as the only state that has not
yet conferred its private sector industrial
relations powers to the Commonwealth,
to seek relief from the Fair Work
Commission where industrial strike
action could financially damage the state
economy or local communities.
In justifying the government’s change
to this area of Australia’s workplace laws,
Minister for Employment Eric Abetz draws
on the example of planned strike action
by tug boat operators at Port Hedland.
“The state government of Western
Australia may well have an interest
in seeking to avoid industrial action
in circumstances where, as has been
suggested – and, indeed, threatened –
there might be industrial action by about
five dozen highly-paid workers at Port
Hedland,” Minister Abetz says.
“Additionally, there are other
companies involved that, regrettably, have
no say in the matter because the head
agreement is with another company. As
a result, thousands of workers in Western
Australia could lose their jobs.”
AMMA believes the outcome is positive for
employers which have been, or could be, an
innocent third party to damaging strikes.
RP
RESOURCE
PEOPLE
SUMMER 2014-15
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POLICY
37
