Rowe v Capital Territory Health Commission

In Rowe v Capital Territory Health Commission, the Court was asked to determine whether two student nurses, Miss Simms and Miss Pfeiffer, were employees of the Capital Territory Health Commission, which operates several hospitals in the Australian Capital Territory. The primary issue was whether the student nurses were entitled to the pay rates prescribed for student nurses under the relevant award. Justice Keely had previously found that the student nurses were employees of the Commission and therefore entitled to the prescribed rates. The Commission appealed this decision, arguing that no contract existed between them and the student nurses or, if it did, the student nurses were not under any contractual obligation to perform services for the Commission. The Court held that a contractual relationship existed between the Commission and the student nurses, involving mutual rights and obligations. The Court rejected the Commission's argument that the relationship was akin to that of an educator and student, finding instead that the student nurses were performing work in a relationship of service for the Commission. The Court concluded that the student nurses were employees of the Commission and therefore entitled to the prescribed rates, dismissing the Commission's appeal.