Fair Work Commission

The Commission must specify the period of suspension

See Fair Work Act s.427

The Commission must specify, in an order suspending protected industrial action, the period for which the protected industrial action is suspended.

Notice period

The Commission may specify, in the order, a longer period of notice of up to seven working days for the minimum period of notice for taking employee claim action (under s.430) if satisfied that there are exceptional circumstances justifying that longer period of notice.

Extension of a period of suspension

See Fair Work Act s.428

The Commission may make an order extending the period of suspension specified in an order (the suspension order) suspending protected industrial action for a proposed enterprise agreement if:

• the person who applied, or a person who could have applied, for the suspension order, applies for the extension, and
• the Commission has not previously made an order under this section in relation to the suspension order, and
• the Commission is satisfied that the extension is appropriate taking into account any matters the Commission considers relevant including the matters specified in the provision under which the suspension order was made.

If the Commission is permitted to make an order extending the period of suspension:

• the Commission must specify, in the order, the period of extension, and
• the Commission may specify, in the order, a longer period of notice for taking employee claim action (under s.430) of up to seven working days for the minimum period of notice if satisfied that there are exceptional circumstances justifying that longer period of notice.

An application for an order extending a suspension of protected industrial action must be accompanied by a copy of the order to suspend protected industrial action to which the application relates.^[1]

Employee claim action after a period of suspension

See Fair Work Act s.429

This section applies in relation to employee claim action for a proposed enterprise agreement if:

• an order suspending the employee claim action has been made, and
• a protected action ballot authorised the employee claim action:
  • some or all of which had not been taken before the beginning of the period (the suspension period) of suspension specified in the order, or
  • which had not ended before the beginning of the suspension period, or
  • beyond the suspension period; and
• the suspension period (including any extension) ends, or the order is revoked before the end of that period.

Further protected action ballot not required to engage in employee claim action

A person may engage in the employee claim action without another protected action ballot.

For the purposes of working out when the employee claim action may be engaged in, the suspension period (including any dates authorised by the protected action ballot as dates on which employee claim action is to be engaged in) must be disregarded.

Nothing in this section authorises employee claim action that is different in type or duration from the employee claim action that was authorised by the protected action ballot.

Notice of employee claim action after a period of suspension

See Fair Work Act s.430

Before a person engages in employee claim action for a proposed enterprise agreement after a suspension period, a bargaining representative of an employee who will be covered by the proposed enterprise agreement must give written notice of the action to the employer of the employee.

The period of notice must be at least:

• three working days, or
• if the Commission specified a longer period of notice in an order relating to the employee claim action – that period of notice.

The notice must state the nature of the employee claim action and the day on which it will start.

Reference

^[1] Fair Work Commission Rules r. 32.