TASMANIAN INDUSTRIAL COMMISSION

Industrial Relations Act 1984
s70(1) appeal against an order

Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Limited
(T6371 of 1996)

Appeal against order handed down by Commissioner Imlach on 26.6.96 in Matter T6038 of 1996 re redundancy payments for former employees at Chubb Australia Limited - no jurisdiction

REASONS FOR DECISION

This application was an appeal lodged by the Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Limited in accordance with section 70(1)(b) of the Industrial Relations Act 1984, against a decision by Commissioner Imlach1 to order the payment of compensation in the form of two weeks' wages for each year of employment that certain dismissed employees had served with Chubb Australia Ltd.

The Commissioner's order followed proceedings in the above matter convened pursuant to section 29 of the Act, to deal with an application, by the Australian Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Workers Union - Tasmanian Branch (the ALHMWU) which was couched in the following terms:

"There is a dispute between the Union and Chubb Security in that the applicant seeks redundancy payments for employees terminated from their position at the aforementioned company due to a loss of work. The applicant also seeks the commission to issue an order to that affect or other order as the Commission deems appropriate."

At the commencement of the appeal proceedings the appellant and the union were asked to address the Bench on the jurisdiction of the Commission to deal with the matter in light of the decision of the Full Court of the Supreme Court of Tasmania in New Town Timber and Hardware Pty Ltd v. Gurr, Anthony John and Gozzi, Robert handed down on 27 July 1995.

Both parties, in declining to make submissions on the point, said that the question of jurisdiction was a matter for the Commission.

We have considered the terms of the original application and the submissions made by the parties before Commissioner Imlach. We are satisfied that the application and the claim by the union constituted only a demand for the payment of a sum of money, in the form of a redundancy payment, to certain ex-employees of Chubb Australia Ltd because they had lost their employment with that company. Since there was no demand for their reinstatement or re-employment to re-establish the employer/employee relationship, we consider, having regard to the Supreme Court decision referred to above, that the dispute lacks the industrial character which is required to make the dispute an industrial dispute for the purposes of the Industrial Relations Act 1984.

As the original application does not give the Commission jurisdiction to deal with the subject matter contained in it, the order of Commissioner Imlach has no standing. Accordingly, pursuant to section 71(13) of the Act the decision of Commissioner Imlach in Matter T6038 of 1996, dated 26 June 1996, to the extent that it has any effect at law, is revoked.

Appearances:
Mr S J Gates for the Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Limited
Mr K O'Brien for the Australian Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Workers Union - Tasmanian Branch

Date and place of hearing:
1996
August 7
Hobart

1 T6038 of 1996 dated 26 June 1996