C2004/5850, Transcript of Proceedings [2004] AIRCTrans 3906 (6 October 2004)

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TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS


O/N 8592

AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRIAL

RELATIONS COMMISSION

SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT WATSON

C2004/5850

TEACHERS (ENGLISH COLLEGES)
AWARD 1999

Application under section 113 of the Act
by the Independent Education Union of
Australia to vary the above award to reflect
redundancy case [PR032004] and the
redundancy case supplementary decision
[PR062004]

MELBOURNE

10.10 AM, MONDAY, 27 SEPTEMBER 2004

PN1

MR A. ODGERS: I appear on behalf of the IEUA in this matter.

PN2

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Thank you, Mr Rogers. Did you anticipate anyone from the employers - - -

PN3

MR ODGERS: I most certainly do not, your Honour. It has been many years since any of the employers appeared in any proceedings.

PN4

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Very well. Well, I will hear from you and - - -

PN5

MR ODGERS: Your Honour, if I can hand to you a copy of a letter sent to employers in this matter which contains the - attached to it, the notice of listing, a copy of the application in the matter, a copy of the draft order that my organisation is seeking in the matter. And also in that bundle is a copy of the originals of the registered post lodgement receipts.

PN6

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Thank you. Yes, I will mark the bundle of documents exhibit IEUA1.

EXHIBIT #IEUA1 BUNDLE OF DOCUMENTS REGARDING APPLICATION

PN7

MR ODGERS: Thank you.

PN8

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Thank you. Yes, Mr Odgers.

PN9

MR ODGERS: Your Honour, I am sure you have had an opportunity to look at the - were the orders in this matter forwarded - - -

PN10

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: No, they weren't.

PN11

MR ODGERS: All right. In that case, can I say that I believe that the orders that are proposed are consistent with the decision, in the first instance, of the Full Bench on 26 March and, secondly, with the Full Bench in the supplementary decision. The redundancy amounts that are proposed and the facilitative clauses are in almost every case identical to those of the model provided by the Commission. These awards, as I have said, contain notice periods that differ from the standard notice periods that are provided as part of the Commission's decision.

PN12

All awards - I am sure your Honour's responsibilities in this sector would have alerted you to this, but all awards in this sector contain non-standard notice periods. The primary reason for that, as your Honour would be aware, and I won't go on about it at length, is that it takes more than a week or two weeks to recruit another teacher. In the school - in school education, for example, it would not be possible to recruit a senior teacher in a secondary school in December so those awards provide for nearly a term's notice so that the whole question of engagement is determined and people are able to prepare for the coming academic year.

PN13

There is a different cycle in this industry - in this part of the industry, but most of the notice periods reflect four weeks either side to it fundamentally, on employer's previous insistence to enable them to recruit suitably trained staff. That is the only difference of any significance - - -

PN14

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: And that is - - -

PN15

MR ODGERS: - - - between this order that is proposed - - -

PN16

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Yes.

PN17

MR ODGERS: - - - and the model clauses that were provided as a result of the decisions I referred to earlier.

PN18

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: And the period of notice, does that go within the order or that simply adopts - - -

PN19

MR ODGERS: Only by way of reference.

PN20

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Only by way of reference. Yes. So it simply maintains existing provisions.

PN21

MR ODGERS: Maintains existing provisions.

PN22

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Yes.

PN23

MR ODGERS: I should point out, sir, in that respect that both of these awards, of course, have been through the award simplification process.

PN24

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Yes.

PN25

MR ODGERS: I have nothing further to add to my submissions in that respect.

PN26

THE SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Very well. Thank you for that, Mr Odgers. This is an application by the Independent Education Union of Australia to vary the Teachers (English Colleges) Award 1999 to give effect to the test case provisions arising from redundancy case in prints PR032004 and 062004. I am satisfied from exhibit IEUA1 that the respondent employers have been served with notice of the hearing and the order proposed and have had an opportunity to appear and to be heard. Subject to checking the terms of the order against the test case provision, I am satisfied that the order appropriately gives effect to the test case decision and order.

PN27

I note that the award will retain existing notice provisions which vary from those normally within awards reflecting the maintenance of a longstanding provision which in turn reflects the particular circumstances of the industry and has been subject to consideration by the Commission both before and in the context of the simplification of the award. In my view, the maintenance of those provisions properly reflects the intention of the Full Bench in respect to particular provisions justified in the context of the particular industry. Otherwise the order, on my reading of it, simply gives effect to the redundancy case decision.

PN28

As I have indicated, I will take the opportunity to check the order against the model clause arising out of that decision, but unless there is some issue that arises from that checking, I will vary the award. The award will be varied in the terms of the draft order within exhibit IEUA1 to have effect from today's date and the order will remain in force for a period of three months. I will now adjourn that matter and adjourn generally.

ADJOURNED INDEFINITELY [10.15am]

INDEX

LIST OF WITNESSES, EXHIBITS AND MFIs

EXHIBIT #IEUA1 BUNDLE OF DOCUMENTS REGARDING APPLICATION PN7