Mowbray back at Fair Work Australia

Mowbray College has once again fallen foul of Fair Work Australia (FWA), when a decision issued yesterday found they had breached their legal obligations to employees by failing to consult about major changes and proposed redundancies.

The Victorian Independent Education Union (VIEU), which covers all teaching and non-teaching staff at the College, took Mowbray to FWA.  
“It seems Mowbray is continuing its poor form of 2009. They were the first Victorian Independent School in 170 years to incite industrial action – a dubious honour – when they failed to back-pay staff as committed to,” said Debra James, General Secretary of VIEU.
“Now the College is engaging in sham consultation, by talking with staff after major decisions have already been made.”
Mowbray has already made five leadership positions redundant and had called meetings with canteen staff and cleaners to discuss “cost saving” initiatives including contracting work out.  

FWA found that Mowbray failed to meet its legal obligations on a number of counts, including:
•    consulting far too late, when final decisions had already been made;
•    only consulting with those in redundant positions, when required to consult all staff affected by change;
•    refusing to recognise the Union as the representative of employees;
•    failing to provide relevant information to the Union.
 
FWA will call the parties back in coming weeks to deal with information to be provided to the Union about canteen staff.  Canteen staff say that they were told their work was being contracted out and that their jobs would finish on 12 July.  

A copy of the decision (IEUA v Mowbray College [2010] FWA 4824) is available at http://mowbray2010decision.notlong.com