National Wage Case August 1977 - [1977] FCA 68

i 6

THE AUSTRALIAN CONCILIATION

AND ARBITRATION COMMISSION

CONCILIATION AND ARBITRATION

ACT 1904

C. Nos. 1193, 1194, 1196 and

1197 of 1977

PUBLIC SERVICE ARBITRATION

ACT 1920

C. No.

1214 of 1977

NATIONAL

WAGE

CASE

AUGUST

1977

EELBOURNE ,22 AUGUST 1977

SIR JOHN MOORE, PRESIDENT

MR. JUSTICE ROBINSON

MR. DEPUTY PRESIDENT ISAAC

I	MR. ACTING PUBLIC SERVICE ARBITRATOR WATSON MR. COMMISSIONER MATTHEWS

REASONS FOR DECISION

2 .

For the June quarter 1977 the

Six Capitals figure of the

Conswner Price Index rose by

2.4 per cent. Consequently

claims were made as described below, with any increase to

operate from 15 August 1977. The claims and the attitude

of parties and interveners are as follows:

Australian Council of Trade Unions

2.4 per cent increase

and Australian Council

of Salaried

plus an amount to

and Professional Associations

compensate for full percentage increases not awarded in the past.

Council of Australian Government

Employee Organizations and

Council of Professional Associations

2.4 per cent Increase.

Australian Public Service Federation

2.4 per cent increase.

New South Wales

2.4 per cent increase

up to Average Weekly

Earnings then

a flat

amount.

South Australia and Tasmania

2.4 per cent increase.

Comonwealth and Western Australia

no increase.

Victoria

discount 2.4 per cent by

0.4 per cent for devaluation

then award half, i.e.

1 per

cent increase.

Queensland

matter for

Commission but

if an increase

a uniform

percentage increase less

than 2.4 per cent.

I ' \

I .

Master

Builders'

Federation

no increase

unt i l

substant ia l

compliance.

National Employers' Policy

Committee

no increase.

one i n terms suggested that the indexation

package

should be

abandoned.

As a re su l t of the Commission's decision of 24 May 1977

the par t ies are act ively involved in

thoroughgoing review

wage f ixing pr inciples

in a conference under the chairmanship

of the

President.

Central

that

inquiry

i s the

fu ture

indexation.

Inevitably

our

deliberations

the

present

case

haye been influenced by the 47-going nature of the review and

the wish not to prejudice the possibil i ty

consensus

emerging

from the

discussions.

consider it would be

undesirable

for us to depart

from the pa t te rn

which the Comission has

created over the	last two years or to	make any statements about
general principles.

Hence,

as to subs t an t i a l

compliance rre

simply say

tha t

having considered the statist ics

and

the evidence

disputation

we are prepared to follow the reasoning

the May decision and

conclude that

here

has

been

substantial

compliance.

This

conclusion has

been made the more d i f f i c u l t by

certain unions

openly

s t a t ing

that

they are seeking to destroy the

package

and

taking act ion in

an attempt to bring this about.

Following the same approach we

say that

we a r e n…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading National Wage Case August 1977

Details

AGLC: National Wage Case August 1977 [1977] FCA 68
Case: [1977] FCA 68
Decision Date: 22 Aug 1977

CaseChat Overview and Summary

This case involved a dispute before the Australian Conciliation and Arbitration Commission regarding wage indexation for the June quarter of 1977. Various unions and employers' organisations submitted claims for wage increases to account for the rise in the Consumer Price Index, as well as arguments for and against wage indexation and other wage principles. The Commission considered the economic context, noting the lack of economic recovery and conflicting views on the causes of the stagnation. It concluded that reducing real wages was not the solution and that granting no increase at that time was not essential for economic recovery. However, the Commission also had to account for the effect of devaluation on the Consumer Price Index. It decided to discount the Index for devaluation using the Statistician's estimate, despite acknowledging that this figure may overstate or understate the full effect. The Commission then awarded a uniform 2% increase to all award rates and minimum wages, while clarifying that this increase would not apply to overaward payments. It made this decision while noting that a conference on wage fixing principles was ongoing, which would affect future wage indexation and industrial relations.

Orders