Fair Work Australia reveal strike cancellation reasons

Fair Work Australia has published the reasons for its decision to cancel a proposed national strike ballot of Australia Post employees, reports The Australian. The article continues:

It found the workers’ union was not genuinely trying to reach an agreement with the organisation.

During negotiations over an enterprise agreement, the Communications Electrical and Plumbing Union (CEPU) had sought to restrict Australia Post’s right to use independent contractors; including requiring the company to contract out a position only if it was not wanted by an Australia Post employee.

But Fair Work Australia upheld earlier legal rulings that provisions restricting or qualifying the employer’s right to use independent contractors were not matters pertaining to the employment relationship.

“The CEPU has been and is pursuing as a substantive term of the proposed enterprise agreement a claim in respect of contractors which is not about a permitted matter for a proposed enterprise agreement under the Fair Work Act,” a full bench of the tribunal found.

Therefore, it said, it was not satisfied the union had been genuinely trying to reach an agreement with Australia Post.