The Fair Work Commission decided in favour of the ETU after the FIFO workers were made redundant just prior to starting a week of recreation leave, and reduced the termination payout to each worker by a week, counting the unpaid rostered leave as part of their notice period.
The ETU challenged the move, arguing that it was unlawful for Kentz to have the notice period run concurrently with rest and recreation leave.
While the ETU is investigating all three Curtis Island LNG projects, ICN sister publication Energy News has learned that GLNG will be front and centre of any follow-up claim.
The FWC ruled that rest and recreation was leave and that notice of termination of employment could not run concurrently with a period of leave, and ordered Kentz Australia to pay more than $1 million to the workers.
ETU national legal officer Michael Wright said the case set a significant precedent for other FIFO workers who had been terminated in similar circumstances in the Northern Territory, Western Australia and Queensland, including on the major Gorgon LNG, Curtis Island LNG and Roy Hill iron ore projects.
“This victory won’t just see these 150 electricians receive additional payment, it opens the door for thousands of other FIFO workers who have been denied notice pay in breach of minimum conditions on major resource projects across Australia,” Wright said.
An ongoing ETU review of the industry has allegedly identified more than 3000 FIFO workers that have been denied more than $10 million of entitlements in the same way.
“The purpose of a notice period is to give workers the chance to get new work,” Wright said.
“These employees were denied this right, with thousands of dollars stripped from their pay packets at the very time they are most vulnerable, having lost their job.
“This decision by the FWC has put resource companies and their contractors on notice that they cannot use the unique vulnerabilities of a FIFO workforce to attack basic employment rights. The ETU is committed to bringing this practice to an end.
“As a result of this legal precedent, we expect to pursue claims for many more people in similar circumstances from around Australia.”
Chevron Corporation’s relationship with unions soured last year when it left the door open to double-bunk workers at the Onslow camp as a future option.
In September, a 24-hour strike by workers on Gorgon was called off after main contractor Chicago Bridge & Iron struck an eleventh hour deal over roster changes.
The Australian Manufacturing Workers Union, the Construction Forestry, Mining and Energy Union and the ETU called off the action after they struck an agreement on roster changes and pay.
The union had pushed for a 26-day on/nine-day off roster to be scaled back to 20-on/10-off, claiming it would be more family friendly, but the parties have reached a compromise of 23-on/10-off.
Energy News has contacted Kentz for comment on the latest ruling.
