The AIRC today
considered Australia Post's
application to stop the CEPU
ban on the driving of the
new Mercedes Sprinter vans
on safety grounds.
The Commission ruled that it
believed the union ban was
industrial action.
The same Commissioner that
heard Post's dispute
resolution action earlier in
the week refused to take
evidence the union wished to
call to counter Post's
allegation of industrial
action. She then proceeded
to rule that industrial
action was occuring.
The Commissioner has brought
down an interim ruling which
can be
downloaded here.
The CEPU is considering
how it might appeal this
Interim Order.
As a result of this Interim
Order the union lifts its
ban and has removed from the
CEPU National Office's
website, the notice of the
ban, listed on 29 July, 2008
and has removed from this
website, the reinforcement
notice of the ban listed on
6 August 2008.
We draw union
members attention to page 2
of the Interim Order,
specificially the section
titled "3. Definition".
This section reproduces the
definition of industrial
action contained in the
Workplace Relations Act.
The definition in the
Interim Order contains the
Act's exclusion of actions
that are not
considered
industrial action - in
particular:
"(f) action by an
employee if such action
was based upon the
employee's reasonable
concern about an
imminent risk to the
employee's health or
safety, and the employee
did not unreasonably
fail to comply with the
directions of the
employee's employer to
perform other available
work, whether at the
same or another
workplace, that was safe
and appropriate for the
employee to perform."
This means that the Interim
Order recognises that if a
Post employee has a
reasonable concern about an
imminent risk to their
health or safety as a result
of driving the new Mercedes
Sprinter van, you have a
legal right to decline to
drive the van.
However, if you exercise
this right and Post asks you
to perform alternate duties
- in line with the
conditions spelt out above -
and these duties do not
present an imminent risk to
your health or safety, then
you must perform these
duties.
Members are compelled to
follow the order and are
entitled to exercise their
legal rights if they believe
they are being asked to
perform a task that is
unsafe.
If members are
threatened with disciplinary
action for exercising their
legal rights - or are
disciplined - they are urged
to contact their union
urgently.
The union can take action to
deal with any attempt to
stop members exercising
their rights to protect
their safety.
Please bring this story and
the interim order to the
attention of union members.
