TASMANIAN INDUSTRIAL COMMISSION

Industrial Relations Act 1984
s23 application for award or variation of award

Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Limited
(T8122 of 1998)

GOLIATH CEMENT ENTERPRISE AWARD

Award variation - title - scope - parties and persons bound - op date 01.07.98 - sick leave - op date ffpp 01.12.96 - consent matters - approved

REASONS FOR DECISION

This was an application made under section 23(1) of the Industrial Relations Act 1984 (the Act) by the Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Limited (the Chamber) for a variation to be made to the Goliath Cement Enterprise Award (the Award).

The application sought amendments to the following clauses in the Award:

Clause 1 - Title;
Clause 2 - Scope;
Clause 6 - Parties and Persons Bound; and
Clause 30 - Sick Leave.

The Chamber referred to the draft order attached to the application and advised the Commission that the amendments sought reflected changes which had been foreshadowed in a previous agreement1 and which had come to pass in the meantime.

The Chamber produced as exhibits extracts from the previous agreement which confirmed the basis of the proposed amendments to the Award.

One change had been the consolidation of Goliath Portland Cement Company Limited into the parent company, Australian Cement Holdings Pty Ltd. This change, which by agreement for all employees was treated by the parties as a transmission of employment with full preservation of all entitlements, was the basis for the amendments sought to Clauses 1, 2 and 6 of the Award.

These changes to Clauses 1, 2 and 6 of the Award were to commence operation from 1 July 1998.

The other change introduced a new sick leave system which was optional for those employed previously, but, was to apply to all new employees from the first full pay period to commence on or after 1 December 1996.

The options available to previous employees were only available to be taken up at the specified dates.

Both the previous and the proposed sick leave provisions were intended to be peculiar to the Award.

The Chamber submitted that the proposed variations to the Award were facilitative in the main and complied with the requirements of the Principles of the Commission, the Act and in particular, the public interest. This was especially so the Chamber said because of the special circumstances of single enterprise bargaining and the Structural Efficiency Principle.

The Unions present at the hearing supported the Chamber's submissions and requested that the Commission approve the application.

I accept the submissions of the Chamber: the award will be amended as requested, operative from the agreed dates.

An order is attached.

P A Imlach
COMMISSIONER

Appearances:
Mr T Edwards, with Mr D Covington and Mr C Anderson, for Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Limited
Mr R Hale for Australian Municipal, Administrative, Clerical and Services Union
Mr R Flanagan for The Australian Workers' Union, Tasmania Branch
Mr T Harding for Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing & Kindred Industries Union
Mr K Becker for Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia

Date and place of hearing:
1998
December 21
Hobart

1 Tasmanian Industrial Commission T6626 of 1996, Goliath Enterprise Agreement 1996