The decision has flow on effects

EXTRACT FROM OPTICAL FIBRE DECISION

Extracts from her Honour's decision:

1 In this proceeding, Mr Jayawardana claimed that Telstra had incorrectly classified him at level CFW4 in his employment as a Fibre Technician on Telstra's optic fibre network. On 11 October 2024 I determined that Mr Jayawardana was entitled to be classified at level CFW5 under the applicable enterprise agreements. Accordingly Telstra contravened the enterprise agreements applicable to Mr Jayawardana's employment and s 50 of the Fair Work Act 2009. On 24 December 2024 I made orders by consent for the payment of compensation by Telstra of $98,187, reflecting an agreed sum in settlement of all monies due to Mr Jayawardana for the period 1 October 2019 to 11 October 2024

68 I order as follows.
1. The Court declares that the Defendant contravened s 50 of the Fair Work Act 2009 by classifying the Plaintiff at level CFW4 not level CFW5 in contravention of clause 1.2(a) of Appendix C of each of:
a. the Telstra Enterprise Agreement 2015-2018; b. the Telstra Enterprise Agreement 2019-2021; and c. the Telstra Limited Enterprise Agreement 2022-2024.
2. The Court orders:
a. pursuant to s 546(1) of the Act, that the Defendant pay a pecuniary penalty of $7,650 in respect of the contravention referred to in Order 1.
b. pursuant to s 546(3) of the Act, that the Defendant pay the pecuniary penalty to the Plaintiff

WIDEBAND SOD EOD NEW POLICY

We are receiving reports that Telstra has tried to implement a new policy whereby wideband staff must now adopt the start of Day and End of Day provisions in the EBA. SOD and EOD was designed for staff who attended different customer premises each day (on the box), and did not apply to wideband staff.
We are checking it out and will take it up with Telstra.

OPTUS EBA

The Optus Agreement was approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 16 April 2025. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 15 April 2028.

WORK FROM HOME THREAT - ACTU

The Big Business lobby group AIG, is telling Peter Dutton to cut working from home rights for public sector workers, if he wins the election. Why? Because Willox knows you can only take rights off public sector workers by taking rights off everyone! And we know that a Dutton-led government will bow to Big Business pressure on this, because they have on other workplace rights.
The bottom line is that Dutton's "backflip" on forcing workers back to the office does not mean that access to flexible work will be safe under a future Coalition Government. Peter Dutton says he wants the public to look at what politicians do, more than what they say.
And guess what: he voted against strengthened working from home rights in 2022.
He has also committed to repealing the right to disconnect and rights for casuals and to "reviewing" other workplace rights and he refuses to back real wage increases for our three million lowest-paid workers.
Dutton doesn't understand or care that work from home arrangements have been a win-win outcome, allowing families to save time and money, because he only listened to CEOs, who I'm sure told him that abolishing working from home would be popular.
Well, it wasn't and the Coalition's ensuing backflip is nothing more than Dutton being caught. We know that Peter Dutton and the Coalition cannot be trusted to not cut workers' rights at their first opportunity.
Sally McManus ACTU Secretary