AE & E Australia Pty Ltd (AE&E Australia Pty Ltd) is a contractor engaged on the Worsley Efficiency & Growth project at the Worsley Alumina refinery (project). Its employees on the project have imposed bans on working overtime. AE&E Australia Ltd applied to Fair Work Australia for orders to stop the industrial action in the form of workplace bans.
The overtime bans followed earlier industrial action.
In November 2009, a two day stoppage occurred over a dispute regarding the Christmas leave roster. AE&E Australia Pty Ltd issued warning letters to their workforce regarding the November stoppage and put some workers on notice that this was their final warning.
In January 2010, AE&E Australia Pty Ltd employees on the project went on strike in support of striking workers at another construction site where a crane collapsed during testing.
On 9 February 2010, proceedings took place before Commissioner Cloghan in Fair Work Australia. Having heard the parties, Commissioner Cloghan said that he was satisfied that there was a refusal to work overtime and that it constituted industrial action as defined in the Fair Work Act 2009.
Commissioner Cloghan issued an order that employees of AE&E Australia who were members of the CFMEU and AMWU must stop their industrial action. The order came into effect on 9 February 2010 and remains in force until 30 April 2010.