In a recent set of decisions before Fair Work Australia, a union
official who would not ordinarily have had the ability to represent
workers has unsuccessfully claimed that he was not acting in his
capacity as a union official at the time.
Background
The union official was seeking to represent employees in
negotiations for a new enterprise agreement. The employer did not
operate in an industry which the union official's union had the
right to represent employees, however the union had been taking
steps to try and obtain membership in that industry.
A number of the employer's employees sought to appoint the
union official as their bargaining representative in the
negotiations for the new enterprise agreement. They sought to
nominate the union official in his personal capacity, rather than
as an official of the union.
