| Restrictions | OK |
|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | Employment Relations Authority - Auckland |
| Reference No | AA 115/05 |
| Determination date | 01 April 2005 |
| Member | Y S Oldfield |
| Representation | P Cranney ; P Muir |
| Location | Auckland |
| Parties | Association of University Staff v Vice Chancellor University of Auckland |
| Summary | PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE - BARGAINING - Application for urgency - Application for removal to Court - Applicant initiated bargaining with respondent for multi-employer collective agreement (MECA") - Respondent advised it would only bargain for single employer collective agreement ("SECA") not MECA - Respondent offered staff on individual agreements 4.5 percent pay increase - Same offer made to applicant after statement of problem lodged in Authority - Applicant alleged respondent's refusal to participate in bargaining for MECA breached ss4 and 32 Employment Relations Act 2000 ("ERA") and was unlawful undermining of bargaining - Alleged offer to non-union staff was unlawful undermining of bargaining - Sought declarations and injunction requiring respondent to participate in bargaining for MECA - Current SECA due to expire in one month - Authority could not justify treating matter with urgency - Alleged important questions of law justifying removal: whether obligations in ss4, 32 and 33 ERA applied only in respect of SECA bargaining or equally to MECA bargaining and whether employer may refuse to participate in MECA bargaining - Authority satisfied important and novel questions of law arose - Satisfied that as other union and employer parties had interest in outcome there was public interest - One reason not to exercise discretion to remove was availability in Authority of remedies for resolving bargaining problems through mediation and facilitation - However with both parties in agreement matter removed to Court" |
| Result | Application dismissed (urgency) ; Application granted (removal) ; Matter removed to Court ; Costs reserved |
| Statutes | ERA s4;ERA s4(1)(a);ERA s4(2)(b);ERA s4(4)(a);ERA s32;ERA s32(1)(a);ERA s32(1)(b);ERA s32(1)(c);ERA s32(1)(ca);ERA s32(1)(d);ERA s33;ERA s159(1)(b);ERA s178 |
| Number of Pages | 5 |
| PDF File Link: | aa 115_05.pdf [pdf 29 KB] |