LAW7083

Law of employee relations ( 6 points, SCA Band 3, 0.125 EFTSL)

Leader: Professor Marilyn Pittard

Offered:
City First semester 2006 (On-campus)
City Term 3 2006 (On-campus)

Synopsis: (a) the contract of employment: the rights and obligations of employers and employees; rights in respect of unfair dismissal and redundancy, and remedies for breach; (b) industrial awards: the role of awards in employment relations; making awards and resolving disputes at federal level; the role of industrial tribunals; legal constraints and regulation of award making powers; enforcement; role of unions in arbitration; (c) collective and individual agreements under the Commonwealth Workplace Relations Act 1996; process of negotiation; legal status of such agreements; procedures for enforcement; role of unions and industrial tribunals; (d) legislative prescription of minimum entitlements.

Objectives: On completion of this subject students will have acquired (1) a knowledge of the law relating to employee relations in Australia, the sources of rights and obligations between employers and employees and the processes of resolving employer-employee disputes; (2) an understanding of the theoretical and philosophical bases underpinning the resolution of industrial disputes and the determination of relationships between employer and employees in Australia; and (3) an appreciation of the operation in practice of the systems of dispute resolution and determination in Australia.

Assessment: Research assignment (3750 words): 50% + Class participation: 10% + Take home examination (3000 words): 40%

Contact Hours: 24 hours