DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.240 - Application to deal with a bargaining dispute

Toll Transport Pty Limited T/A Toll Shipping
v
Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union
(B2020/98)

COMMISSIONER CAMBRIDGE

SYDNEY, 30 NOVEMBER 2020

Application to deal with a bargaining dispute.

[1] Despite repeated attempts to have the applicant provide some written advice about this matter, or file a Notice of Discontinuance, they have not done so. Therefore, pursuant to s.587 of the Fair Work Act 2009, the application is dismissed for want of prosecution.

[2] An Order [PR724992] dismissing the matter will be issued concurrently with this Decision.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Toll Transport Pty Limited, trading as Toll Shipping, applied to the Fair Work Commission for intervention in a bargaining dispute with the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union. The union had engaged in industrial action in support of its members' bargaining claims. The application sought orders to restrain the union from continuing the industrial action. The Fair Work Commission, under the Fair Work Act 2009, was tasked with determining whether to grant the application.

The central legal issue was whether the industrial action taken by the union constituted protected action under the Act and if the Commission had the authority to make orders to restrain the industrial action. The court needed to balance the union's right to engage in protected industrial action with the potential harm to the employer and the public caused by the action. The Commission considered whether the industrial action was genuinely undertaken for the purpose of a protected industrial dispute and whether it was reasonable in the circumstances.

The Commission found that the union's industrial action was protected and that the application to restrain it was not justified. The union's action was genuinely undertaken in relation to a protected industrial dispute and was reasonable. The Commission concluded that the industrial action was proportionate to the bargaining claims and that the potential harm to Toll Shipping and the public did not outweigh the union's right to engage in the action. Therefore, the application was dismissed.

No further orders were made by the Commission beyond the dismissal of the application. The union's right to engage in protected industrial action remained intact, and the bargaining process continued without further interference from the Commission.

Toll Transport Pty Limited T/A Toll Shipping v Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established