CASE PROCEDURES – stay order – ss.394, 604, 606 Fair Work Act 2009 – appeal – at first instance Commission determined that employee was unfairly dismissed and ordered compensation of $14,592.00 gross plus 9.5% superannuation to be paid within 21 days – appellant sought permission to appeal decision and sought a stay of the whole of the order – in deciding whether to exercise its discretion to grant a stay order, Commission must first be satisfied that appellant has an arguable case with some reasonable prospects of success, both in respect of permission to appeal and substantive merits of appeal – balance of convenience must weigh in favour of order subject to appeal being stayed [Kellow-Falkiner Motors] – appellant listed multiple grounds of appeal – common theme that decision of Commission involved significant errors of fact – appellant also sought to lead fresh evidence at appeal – purpose of examining grounds of appeal is to consider whether they disclose an arguable case of error, with some reasonable prospect of success on appeal – Commission not persuaded that appellant made an arguable case with some reasonable prospect of success – not persuaded that alleged errors listed in grounds of appeal could be described as significant – considered alleged misapprehension of appellant witness evidence regarding availability of certain products in chemists a matter of potential significance – noted that access to justice should be afforded to entire community and to the extent that a problem of translation resulted in an alleged error of fact it must be significant – not satisfied that appellant had made out an arguable case, with some reasonable prospects of success as to the merits of an appeal or as to permission to appeal – application for stay dismissed. Appeal by Ferngrove Pharmaceuticals P/L against decision of Sams DP of 8 June 2017 [[2017] FWC 2999] Re: Ji
July 14, 2017
ENTERPRISE AGREEMENTS – dispute about matter arising under agreement – interim order – ss.84, 589, 739 Fair Work Act 2009 – respondent proposed to make applicant redundant – applicant applied to Commission to deal with a dispute in relation to consultation under Mission Australia Service Delivery Enterprise Agreement 2016-17 (Enterprise Agreement) – applicant claimed respondent failed to comply with consultation obligation to consider measures to avoid or minimise terminations under Enterprise Agreement – applicant lodged application two days prior to proposed termination – Commission twice invited respondent to delay termination until matter could be listed for further conciliation – respondent rejected invitation – Commission granted interim order – applicant was on parental leave when notified of proposed redundancy – applicant requested redeployment period be delayed until return to work from parental leave – respondent advised applicant that permanent employees on parental leave were required to participate in current redeployment process – applicant submitted that postponement of redeployment until return from parental lease was measure to avoid or minimise risk of termination – whether serious question to be tried – respondent submitted it fulfilled consultation obligations – Commission satisfied questions to be answered including whether respondent engaged in meaningful consultation, had done all it could to mitigate any adverse effects of termination and in refusing to delay consideration of redeployment whether made reasonable efforts to redeploy – applicant claimed dispute settling procedure in Enterprise Agreement requires status quo be maintained to allow further consultation – respondent submitted that when applicant made application to deal with dispute that respondent had already notified her of decision to terminate meaning the continuation of work as normal included effecting termination – Commission considered that balance of convenience lies with applicant – Commission satisfied should grant interim order as applicant’s termination could only be undone after significant litigation – urgency of application made out as termination were to occur a little over an hour after hearing commenced – application for interim order granted. Lee v Mission Australia
July 13, 2017
A man who is alleged to have sexually assaulted an elderly patient at an aged care home in the western suburbs has appeared in court for the first time — but we cannot name the facility. The Ridleyton man, 20, fronted the Port Adelaide Magistrates Court on Wednesday charged with one count of engaging in sexual intercourse without consent between March 31 and May 1 this year. The media cannot reveal the name of the aged care facility where the alleged abuse occurred because Magistrate Kym Millard imposed a suppression order which prevents it from being published. Ian White, for the facility’s owners, sought the suppression order — which was opposed by the media. Mr White said naming the facility could potentially identify the victim. “I agree (naming the facility) doesn’t identify person X specifically, but it narrows and focuses towards a small community and has the potential to identify the alleged victim,” he told the court. In opposition, the media argued naming the facility would not lead to the victim being identified because it was not a small nursing home and it may encourage any other potential victims to come forward. But Mr Millard disagreed, and made the suppression order. The accused man — whose identity is suppressed under state law — will return to the Adelaide Magistrates Court in September.
July 13, 2017
Nurses should be given more powers to discharge patients and help ease the pressure on South Australia’s overcrowded hospitals, the union says. Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF) state secretary Elizabeth Dabars said the State Government agreed to roll out nurse-led discharges in some areas of the health system 18 months ago. The change would mean nurses could discharge patients from hospital in certain situations, such as after minor surgeries, and according to criteria agreed upon by doctors. Ms Dabars said the practice was already happening for specific situations in some hospitals but not enough had been done to implement a broader policy change.
July 13, 2017
Uraidla Physio is still fighting a s.394 (Application for unfair dismissal remedy) application by Mitchell.
July 13, 2017
A Gold Coast judge has refused to stand aside from a case involving an alleged fake Russian doctor, after accusations of bias. Vincent Berg, a former Soviet political refugee who is facing more than 20 charges including grievous bodily harm and using forged qualifications to gain medical registration in Queensland, on Wednesday sought to have Judge David Kent QC removed from the case. In a pre-trial hearing, defence lawyers argued the judge could be perceived as being biased because he had previously sat on the Medical Board. But Judge Kent ruled that the charges against Berg dated back to 1999, about 15 years before he was on the board. He said the argument that he could be seen as not being impartial was “understandable” but rejected it and declined to recuse himself. Berg’s trial is set down for later this month.
July 13, 2017
A sch.3, item 15 (Application by agreement to terminate collective agreement-based transitional instrument) by Town and Country Community Options Limited T/A Town and Country Community Options for its Town and Country Community Options – Disability Support Workers Agreement 2007 has been granted.
July 13, 2017
Western Australia health service has experienced its second high-profile departure within months of a damning report calling for leadership change, with Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) executive director Michelle Dillon resigning to “pursue other opportunities”. Ms Dillon’s resignation following on the heels of health chief Frank Daly’s exit last month and the release of a report revealing “genuine issues” with morale at the hospital. In the report, 90 per cent of the 200 staff interviewed said the hospital was a “very unhappy place to work” and about 10 per cent wanted to resign.
