FWC urged to be cautious in developing union delegates' rights

National employer association Ai Group is telling the Fair Work Commission (FWC) to be "cautious" in developing any new union delegates rights under the Closing Loopholes legislation.

The law, which was passed late last year, requires the FWC to insert a delegates' rights term into all modern awards by June 30.

Ahead of the deadline, Ai Group chief executive Innes Willox said that a cautious approach will be needed as the law is rushing the FWC to develop the new rights and is not giving it time to properly examine their impact on different industries.

‘Unrealistic shopping list of claims’ by union

The chief executive also warned that the legislation enables the union movement to pursue an "entirely unrealistic shopping list of claims for problematic and unjustified new entitlements" for delegates.

Theese range from proposals for employers to provide union delegates with iPads to requirements for employers to pay for delegates to recruit members during working time, lobbying governments, he said in a statement, along with watching Commission proceedings that the union decides to pursue against them.

"The provisions are a particular nightmare for small business owners who have neither the time nor the expertise to deal with a union official standing over them in the workplace."

Willox further pointed out that the proposals are unjustified given that only a tiny proportion of private sector employees want to be in a union.

"The union proposals are clearly directed at saving flatlining union membership levels rather than genuinely improving compliance with workplace laws," he added.

Closing Loopholes changes for workplace delegates

The Closing Loopholes legislation, which was passed late last year, amends the Fair Work Act to provide specific rights and protections for the work undertaken by workplace delegates.

"The amendments introduce a general protection for workplace delegates when carrying out their role at a workplace, including preventing an employer from unreasonably refusing to deal with them, misleading them, or hindering and obstructing the exercise of their rights as delegates," read the factsheet from the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations.

Justice Adam Hatcher, president of the FWC, said in a statement in December that the creation of delegates' rights terms for modern awards will "require significant consultation and engagement with stakeholders."

Willox said the Ai Group is "fully engaged" with the FWC's proceedings on the matter.

"[The Ai Group is] strongly putting the case for common sense to prevail and the more outrageous union demands to be rejected outright," he said.