Employers' push for casualisation in Black Coal Award defeated

In a major win for the CFMEU, the Fair Work Commission has rejected the application by a major employers group to extend the casual employment provisions in the Black Coal award to Production and Engineering Employees.

At present, the employment of casuals under the Award is restricted to the classification of Staff employees. In a move to spread casualisation to all employees throughout Australia’s black coal industry, the Australian Industry Group took their fight to the Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission but were defeated by the strong case mounted by our Union.

General Secretary Andrew Vickers welcomed the win by the Union.

“This was an important battle to hold the line against the employers drive to further casualise our coal industry. That we were able to defeat the employers on this occasion is a credit to the quality of the case mounted by our Legal Team with Andrew Thomas playing a particularly strong role”.

General Secretary Vickers said that the Union can’t afford to rest on its laurels.

“We know the employers will regroup and mount further challenges to our security of employment. We know they will try and attack the Award that underpins our basic and hard won entitlements and conditions. But one thing that our membership can be sure of is that our Union will fight the employers attacks every inch of the way to protect our jobs, conditions and rights at work.

“Our Union will continue to use whatever resources are necessary to ensure the best outcomes for our members, our families and our communities”, he said.