TASMANIAN INDUSTRIAL COMMISSION

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

The Minister administering the State Service Act 2000
(T13857 of 2011)

TEACHING SERVICE (TASMANIAN PUBLIC SECTOR) AWARD

PRESIDENT P L LEARY

HOBART, 27 MARCH 2012

Application to refer matter to a Full Bench – public interest – application rejected

REASONS FOR DECISION

[1] This is the second application by the Australian Education Union, Tasmanian Branch (AEU) to have matter T13857 of 2011 referred to a Full Bench of the Commission.

[2] The first application made pursuant to s35(1)(c) of the Industrial Relations Act 1984 (the Act) was received at 4.58pm yesterday seeking an adjournment of the matter listed for today.  That application was rejected as the matter before the Commissioner does not seek to alter the “amount of annual leave.”

[3] The parties to the dispute were informed at 5.47pm last night of my decision rejecting the application by the AEU.

[4] At the hearing of the matter this morning the AEU has made a further application, this time pursuant to s24(4C) of the Act which provides that “Subject to subsection (4D) the Commissioner must refer the matter to the President if requested to do so by a party to the hearing of the application.”

[5] The application by the AEU should have been made pursuant to s24(4A) which prescribes that “A party to the hearing of an application may request the Commissioner to refer the application to the President.”

[6] It is noted that the AEU has failed to comply with s24(4B) of the Act which provides that “A party to the hearing of an application intending to request the Commissioner to refer the application to the President is to notify the Commissioner and the other parties to the hearing of that intention before the day on which the hearing is scheduled to commence.”

[7] S24(4C) mandates that the Commissioner hearing the matter is required to refer the matter to the President once a request has been made by a party to the hearing. Accordingly Commissioner McAlpine has referred the request by the AEU to me.

[8] The application before the Commissioner seeks to vary the time of taking annual leave for teachers to take into account the proposed implementation of a 4 term school year.  The application does not seek to alter the quantum of annual leave entitlement.

[9] I am advised that the Minister administering the State Service Act 2000 (the Minister) at the hearing today sought to amend the application to incorporate an extract from Appendix 14 of the 4 Term Review Group Report by including in the award the following:

“There is no diminution or addition to existing total holiday length for teachers.”

[10] Accordingly the Minister has confirmed that the application does not seek to alter the amount of annual leave and I would support the proposed amendment to the application by the Minister.

[11] The AEU has also asserted that the introduction of the 4 term year was of such public interest it should be referred to a Full Bench.  The introduction of a 4 term school year is a decision of Government and is not the matter before the Commission.

[12] I am of the view that the matter before the Commissioner is not relevant to the public interest as there is no change to any standard condition of employment.

[13] The applications by the AEU are rejected.

[14] The matter will proceed before Commissioner McAlpine.

P L Leary
PRESIDENT