C0118/098, Transcript of Proceedings [2001] AIRCTrans 2224 (4 September 2001)

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TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRIAL

RELATIONS COMMISSION

SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT DUNCAN

C No 01180 of 1998

APPLICATION FOR A REVIEW PURSUANT TO
ITEM 51 SCHEDULE 5 TRANSITIONAL WROLA
ACT 1996 OF THE FILM AUSTRALIA PTY LTD
(TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT)
AWARD 1989 RE AWARD SIMPLIFICATION

SYDNEY

9.40 AM, THURSDAY, 16 AUGUST 2001

Continued from 6.12.99

Adjourned sine die

PN1

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: I'll take appearances.

PN2

MR. S. WHIPP: Thank you, Senior Deputy President, I appear for the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance.

PN3

MR P. SAGGERS: Senior Deputy President, I appear for Film Australia.

PN4

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Thank you, Mr Saggers, my intention this morning is to obtain for the record a very brief statement from you as to where we're at and then if there is anything that needs attention go into conference with you to deal with it that way. Yes, Mr Saggers?

PN5

MR SAGGERS: Senior Deputy President, this matter appears to have fallen between the cracks, as it were, at the offices of both the parties. Back in February there was a written communication between the parties and Mr Stone and a number of matters, and small additional matters, were raised for consideration by the parties to round off what had largely been an agreed form of a simplified award and those matters were agreed and it seems that probably due to the fact that representatives of both parties left at that particular point who had the carriage of the matter.

PN6

The agreed changes which are very simple, and not substantive, were not communicated back to the Commission and so a revised form was never sent out it not being the kind of matter that was causing difficulties in either camp, nobody brought the matter up until indeed the notice of listing was forwarded. So we apologise for that to the Commission and Mr Whipp and I will now confer and get the agreed changes to the wording into the Commission and we think that they are simple, they were agreed, and just to reconfirm that we will expedite the finalisation of the simplified wording. There are a number of other matters that we need to make application for but they are separate but we hope to have them on at the same time and I apologise to the Commission for the delay since February.

PN7

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Thank you, Mr Saggers. Mr Whipp?

PN8

MR WHIPP: Senior Deputy President, look, I think Mr Saggers has correctly outlined the situation. There has been correspondence between the parties, there has been nothing occur in relation to this matter since February unfortunately but it seems to me as though the matter is agreed between the parties. As Mr Saggers has indicated, and as I outlined when the matter was first before the Commission in 1999, there are number of matters which the parties jointly thought might be appropriately dealt with in the award which are not currently dealt with in the award, and were agreed matters, and we were seeking to make an application to vary the award to have that application joined to the simplification and I think that's one of the difficulties which has delayed the proceedings that that application was never made.

PN9

I can undertake that we will make an application within the next seven days and ask the Registry to refer the matter to you and we can make an application to have the two matters joined and that the matters be dealt with together. So that you are aware of the matters which will be the subject of the application for some time there has been a redundancy entitlement at Film Australia which is a superior entitlement to that which is set out in the test case provision and the parties are agreed that that entitlement can be inserted into the award.

PN10

The other matter which will be the subject of the application is that there currently is there are no rates of pay set out in the award and the application will need to propose the minimum rates of pay for the various classifications in the classification structure and those with - - -

PN11

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: You feel confident that you will be able to establish that they're properly fixed minimum rates.

PN12

MR WHIPP: We feel confident that they are properly fixed minimum rates and so we feel confident that that can be established, yes.

PN13

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Very well, they are the two main things that will - - -

PN14

MR WHIPP: To my knowledge those are the only two things which will need to be addressed in the application.

PN15

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: All right then, thank you, Mr Whipp. I don't think there is any need to go into conference I think you have put the position clearly on the record where you're at. I note the reason advanced for the delay and I think Mr Saggers obviously described it correct, it fell between the cracks. However, the presence of you both this morning gives me heart and I'll adjourn the matter generally at this stage in the expectation that there will be movement of the substantial kind within the next - and I won't be definite about it - but within the next couple of weeks. I adjourn the matter indefinitely.

ADJOURNED INDEFINITELY [9.45am]