This Supplementary Order Paper amends the Employment Relations Amendment Bill by deleting clauses 6 and 7.

The clauses as they read currently in the Bill repeal the right of an employer to give or decline consent to a representative of a union to enter the employer’s workplace. There are many reasons why an employer may decline consent to access a workplace, including health and safety issues, workplace policies, and procedures that a union representative may not be familiar with or aware of. Gaining unfettered and undeclared access to a workplace could have a significant impact on the operation and productivity of a business. The principal Act currently strikes the right balance between giving union representatives access to workplaces and the continued operation of those workplaces.

This amendment means a union representative must obtain consent to enter a workplace, in provision with the object of the principal Act, which recognises that employment relationships must be built not only on the implied mutual obligations of trust and confidence, but also a requirement for good faith behaviour. Undeclared and unconsented access to an employer’s workplace is not an indication of trust and confidence, nor are these actions conducted in good faith.