FWC president denies continuing conflicts

funds-management/federal-court/

3 June 2014
| By Staff |
image
image image
expand image

The president of the Fair Work Commission (FWC), Justice Iain Ross has been challenged within a Senate Committee to explain the trade union linkages between members of the FWC expert superannuation panel and his own former employment as an official of the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU).

As well, Justice Ross was asked whether the former involvement of one of his remaining expert superannuation panel members, Arthur Apted, with AustralianSuper might be construed as representing a conflict of interest.

Ross pointed out that if there were any issues with respect to perceived conflicts of interest, they should properly raised in the Federal Court but that members of any of the Fair Work Commission had a continuing obligation to notify him of conflicts of interest if they were to arise.

On the question on his former employment by the ACTU and the ACTU backgrounds of a number of members of the Fair Work Commission and FWC panels, Ross pointed out that those dated back over 25 years and he did not see them as relevant today.

Further, Ross made clear to the Senate committee that he had not been involved in the selection of the members of the FWC expert superannuation panel and that he had simply received notification of those to make-up the panel from the office of the former Minister for Workplace Relations and now Federal Opposition leader, Bill Shorten.

The immediate future of the FWC expert superannuation panel is now in the hands of the Minister for Employment, Senator Eric Abetz, with Justice Ross have requested the minister appoint a replacement member for Vicki Allen, one of two members stood aside due to perceived conflicts of interest.

Read more about:

AUTHOR

Recommended for you

sub-bgsidebar subscription

Never miss the latest news and developments in wealth management industry

MARKET INSIGHTS

So we are now underwriting criminal scams?...

4 months 3 weeks ago

Glad to see the back of you Steve. You made financial more expensive, not more affordable as you claim, and presided ...

5 months ago

Completely agree Peter. The definition of 'significant change is circumstances relevant to the scope of the advice' is s...

7 months ago

Commonwealth Bank has formally dropped to zero advisers following LGT Crestone’s acquisition of its advice arm – some six years on from the Hayne royal commission. ...

3 weeks 5 days ago

The FSCP has issued a written direction to an adviser who charged clients “extraordinary fees” for inappropriate and conflicted advice, as well as encouraged them to swit...

1 week 1 day ago

ASIC has cancelled the AFSL of an advice firm associated with Shield and First Guardian collapses, and permanently banned its responsible manager. ...

2 weeks 4 days ago

TOP PERFORMING FUNDS

ACS FIXED INT - AUSTRALIA/GLOBAL BOND
Fund name
3y(%)pa
1
DomaCom DFS Mortgage
92.15 3 y p.a(%)
3