The Federal Court of Australia Full Court has dismissed the CFMMEU's appeal of the Federal Court decision of ABCC v CFMMEU (The Bruce Highway Caloundra to Sunshine Upgrade Case) (No 2) [2019] FCA 1737 – view our previous alert on this case here.
The Full Court's decision confirms that union officials must hold and produce (when requested) federal right of entry permits when seeking to enter a workplace under s81(3) of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld).
Should a union official enter a workplace without either holding a federal right of entry permit or producing it (when requested) they will put themselves in breach of s494(1) of the Fair Work Act 2009 (FW Act). The Full Court decision also confirmed that the union itself can be accessorily liable for the officials' contraventions.
Persons in control of a workplace should be aware that s494 of the FW Act can only be contravened by an official of an organisation, as defined by the FW Act, and not others that do not meet this definition.
If you require further information or have any queries in relation to this legal update, please contact Matthew Smith, Damian Hegarty or Mason Fettell.
