Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (South Eastern Section) v Australian Federation of Air Pilots

The dispute involved the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (South Eastern Section) and the Australian Federation of Air Pilots. The former sought to terminate protected industrial action taken by the latter. This application was heard by the Fair Work Commission. The central legal issues were whether the industrial action was protected, and if the criteria for terminating such action under section 311 of the Fair Work Act 2009 were satisfied. The first issue was whether the action was genuinely for the purpose of bargaining in good faith. The second was whether the action was unreasonable and whether it was reasonable to terminate the action.

The Commission found that the industrial action was genuinely for the purpose of bargaining in good faith. Despite the union's failure to adhere to certain processes, the core purpose of the action was to improve working conditions, which is a legitimate objective. The Commission also considered whether the action was unreasonable. It found that the action was not unreasonable given the circumstances, including the nature of the dispute and the efforts made by both parties to resolve it. However, the Commission did find that it was reasonable to terminate the action. This was due to the substantial impact on the community, particularly in remote areas where the service is critical. The Commission concluded that the public interest in maintaining the service outweighed the union's right to take protected industrial action. As a result, the Commission granted the application to terminate the protected action.