32A   Power to approve road transport collective agreements

             (1)  The Tribunal may approve a road transport collective agreement under this Part.

             (2)  In deciding whether to approve a road transport collective agreement, the Tribunal may have regard to whether the benefit of approving the agreement would outweigh the detriment to the public constituted by any lessening of competition that would result, or be likely to result, if the Tribunal approved the agreement.

33   Road transport collective agreements

             (1)  A road transport collective agreement is an agreement:

                     (a)  between:

                              (i)  contractor drivers (the participating drivers ) with whom a hirer or potential hirer proposes to contract for the provision of specified road transport services (the applicable services ); and

                             (ii)  the hirer or potential hirer of the drivers (the participating hirer ); and

                     (b)  that specifies:

                              (i)  who the participating hirer is; and

                             (ii)  who the participating drivers are; and

                            (iii)  the basis on which the participating drivers became part of that group of drivers; and

                     (c)  that specifies remuneration or related conditions (or both) for participating drivers who provide applicable services to the participating hirer.

Note:       If the Tribunal approves the agreement, its effect is not limited to participating drivers: see section 36.

             (2)  However, an agreement made under any of the following laws is not a road transport collective agreement :

                     (a)  Chapter 6 of the Industrial Relations Act 1996 of New South Wales (and any other provision of that Act to the extent that it relates to, or has effect for the purposes of, a provision of Chapter 6);

                     (b)  the Owner Drivers and Forestry Contractors Act 2005 of Victoria;

                     (c)  the Owner-Drivers (Contracts and Disputes) Act 2007 of Western Australia;

                     (d)  a law of a State or Territory that is specified in regulations made for the purposes of this paragraph, to the extent that the law is so specified.

             (3)  The regulations may prescribe a code of conduct in relation to collective bargaining for road transport collective agreements.

             (4)  Before the Governor-General makes a regulation under subsection (3), the Minister must consult with industry and the Tribunal.

             (5)  A code of conduct prescribed under subsection (3) must have as its object the facilitation of effective and efficient collective bargaining for road transport collective agreements.

             (6)  Despite any other law of the Commonwealth, a State or a Territory, a road transport collective agreement has no effect unless it is an approved road transport collective agreement.

Note:          Subsection (6) does not affect agreements made under any of the laws mentioned in subsection (2), as they are not road transport collective agreements.

34   Matters about which the Tribunal must be satisfied

                   The Tribunal must not approve a road transport collective agreement unless the Tribunal is satisfied that:

                     (a)  a road safety remuneration order that applies to the participating drivers is in effect; and

                     (b)  a majority of the participating drivers would be better off overall when providing applicable services if the agreement applied than if the order applied; and

                     (c)  a majority of the participating drivers have approved the agreement; and

                    (ca)  the participating hirer and the participating drivers have conducted themselves in accordance with any code of conduct prescribed under subsection 33(3); and

                     (d)  if the agreement is to last for more than one year—the agreement contains an appropriate method for adjusting remuneration during the period of the agreement.

35   Approval of road transport collective agreements

             (1)  If the Tribunal approves a road transport collective agreement, the Tribunal must state in writing that the Tribunal is satisfied that the remuneration and any related conditions in the agreement are adequate to ensure that contractor drivers do not have remuneration-related incentives to work in an unsafe manner.

             (2)  The statement under subsection (1) must also:

                     (a)  specify the participating hirer; and

                     (b)  specify the remuneration (including any method for adjusting remuneration during the period of the agreement) and any related conditions in the agreement; and

                     (c)  specify the applicable services; and

                     (d)  state that the participating hirer is required to provide at least the specified remuneration and related conditions to any contractor driver providing applicable services to the hirer; and

                     (e)  specify an expiry date for the approval (which must not be more than 4 years from the date of the statement).

             (3)  The Tribunal must:

                     (a)  give a copy of the statement to the participating hirer and each of the participating drivers; and

                     (b)  publish the statement on the Tribunal’s website and by any other means the Tribunal considers appropriate.

36   Effect of approval

             (1)  The participating hirer in relation to an approved road transport collective agreement must not provide remuneration or related conditions, to a contractor driver who is providing applicable services to the participating hirer, that are less beneficial than the remuneration or related conditions specified in the agreement.

Note:          This subsection is a civil remedy provision (see Division 1 of Part 5).

             (2)  Subsection (1) applies in relation to a contractor driver regardless of whether the driver was a participating driver in relation to the agreement.

37   Relationship with road safety remuneration orders

             (1)  A road safety remuneration order that is in effect at the time the Tribunal approves a road transport collective agreement has no effect in relation to a contractor driver who provides applicable services to the participating hirer.

             (2)  If a road safety remuneration order takes effect after the Tribunal approves a road transport collective agreement, the agreement ceases to have effect in relation to a contractor driver to the extent that the remuneration or related conditions specified in the agreement are less beneficial to the driver than a term of the order that applies to the driver.

37A   Authorisation of conduct for the purposes of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010

Conduct in accordance with approved road transport collective agreement

             (1)  For the purposes of subsection 51(1) of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 , anything done in accordance with an approved road transport collective agreement by:

                     (a)  the participating hirer; or

                     (b)  a contractor driver who is providing applicable services to the participating hirer; or

                     (c)  a person representing a person or persons referred to in paragraph (a) or (b);

is specified in and specifically authorised by this Act.

Entry into approval-pending road transport collective agreement

             (2)  For the purposes of subsection 51(1) of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 , entry into an approval-pending road transport collective agreement by:

                     (a)  a hirer or potential hirer of contractor drivers; and

                     (b)  contractor drivers;

is specified in and specifically authorised by this Act.

Conduct in preparation for or incidental to entry into or obtaining approval of approval-pending road transport collective agreement

             (3)  For the purposes of subsection 51(1) of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 , anything:

                     (a)  done by:

                              (i)  a hirer or potential hirer of contractor drivers; or

                             (ii)  a contractor driver; or

                            (iii)  a person representing a person or persons referred to in subparagraph (i) or (ii); and

                     (b)  done in preparation for, or incidental to, entry into, or seeking approval of, an approval-pending road transport collective agreement;

is specified in and specifically authorised by this Act.

Certain conduct not protected

             (4)  Despite subsections (1), (2) and (3), conduct referred to in those subsections is not specified in or specifically authorised by this Act if the conduct is:

                     (a)  making a contract or arrangement, or arriving at an understanding, that is or contains an exclusionary provision within the meaning of section 4D of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 ; or

                     (b)  conduct that is boycott conduct within the meaning of subsection 87AA(2) of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 .

Meaning of approval-pending

             (5)  A road transport collective agreement is approval-pending if:

                     (a)  approval of the agreement under this Part is intended to be or has been sought; and

                     (b)  the Tribunal has neither approved nor refused to approve the agreement.

38   Expiry of approval

                   The approval of a road transport collective agreement ceases to have effect at the end of the expiry date specified for the approval.

39   Approvals to be given by dual FWA member or Full Bench

                   The function of approving road transport collective agreements under this Part is to be performed by, at the President’s discretion:

                     (a)  a dual FWA member; or

                     (b)  a Full Bench of the Tribunal.