| [2022] FWC 2984 |
| FAIR WORK COMMISSION |
| DECISION |
Fair Work Act 2009
s.437—Protected action
CPSU, the Community and Public Sector Union
v
Management & Training Corporation Pty Ltd T/A MTC Australia
(B2022/1685)
| COMMISSIONER MCKINNON | SYDNEY, 10 NOVEMBER 2022 |
Proposed protected action ballot of employees of Management & Training Corporation Pty Ltd
The CPSU, the Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) is bargaining for an enterprise agreement with Management & Training Corporation Pty Ltd T/A MTC Australia (MTC Australia) under the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The proposed agreement will replace the Parklea Correctional Centre – Correctional Officers Greenfields Enterprise Agreement 2019 which nominally expired on 30 June 2022. Some of the employees of MTC Australia who will be covered by the proposed agreement are members of the CPSU.
The CPSU has applied for a protected action ballot order in relation to the proposed agreement. Section 437 of the Act deals with when a bargaining representative can apply for a protected action ballot order. Section 443 requires the Commission to make a protected action ballot order if certain conditions are met. On the material before me, I am satisfied that these conditions are met because:
there is a notification time in relation to the proposed agreement,
the application is made under section 437, and
the CPSU has been, and is, genuinely trying to reach an agreement with MTC Australia.
It follows that a protected action ballot order must be made.
The notification period for the taking of industrial action in the form of twelve-hour stoppages and twenty-four-hour stoppages will be 5 working days. The period of notice for the taking of industrial action will otherwise be 3 working days.
Order PR747808 gives effect to this decision and will issue separately. The Order will come into effect today.
COMMISSIONER
Appearances:
A McRobert for the CPSU.
A Powter of Australian Industry Group for the respondent.
Hearing details:
2022.
Sydney (by video):
November 10.
Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer
<PR747807>
- AGLC
- CPSU, the Community and Public Sector Union v Management & Training Corporation Pty Ltd T/A MTC Australia [2022] FWC 2984
- Case
- [2022] FWC 2984
- Decision Date
CaseChat Overview and Summary
The court was required to determine if the conditions for making a protected action ballot order were fulfilled. These conditions include the existence of a notification time in relation to the proposed agreement, the application being made under section 437, and the CPSU genuinely attempting to reach an agreement with MTC Australia. The court found that the CPSU had met all these conditions, leading to the conclusion that a protected action ballot order must be granted. The order would permit industrial action in the form of twelve-hour stoppages and twenty-four-hour stoppages, with a notification period of five working days, and a shorter notice period of three working days for other forms of industrial action.
Following the decision, Order PR747808 was issued to give effect to the court's ruling. This order came into effect on the day of the decision, allowing the CPSU to proceed with the protected action ballot. The court's decision was supported by submissions from A McRobert for the CPSU and A Powter of Australian Industry Group for the respondent, during the hearing held in Sydney on November 10, 2022, via video conference.
Orders
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Background
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Evidence
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Decision
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Ratio Decidendi
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