15 In relation to (2), "industrial dispute" is defined in the dictionary under s 4 (1) of the Act to mean a dispute about an industrial matter.
16 "Industrial matter" is defined in s 6 of the Act. The definition is broad and includes the termination of employment of any person in any industry. On the material before me I am satisfied the matter concerns an industrial dispute about an industrial matter. A dispute was notified to the Commission on 25 January 2005 outlining a number of industrial matters, which included the threatened dismissal of Mr Tubungbanua. That Mr Tubungbanua's employment was terminated shortly thereafter does not change the proper characterisation of the matter as an industrial matter.
17 In relation to (3), the third precondition which must be satisfied before s 137 (1) (b) may be invoked is that Mr Tubungbanua must have been dismissed either in the course of the industrial dispute or as a result of the industrial dispute.
18 Mr Tubungbanua's employment came to an end on 26 January 2005. The dispute was notified to the Commission on 25 January 2005, therefore Mr Tubungbanua's employment ended in the course of an industrial dispute.
19 The question remains whether Mr Tubungbanua was in fact dismissed on 26 January 2005. There is no definition of "dismissed" or "dismissal" in the Act, although there are a number of case authorities, which provide assistance. In Fary v Clements Techforce Pty Limited (2002) 120 IR 372 the Full Bench of the South Australian Industrial Relations Commission dealt with the definition of "dismissed" and "dismissal" in the context of a casual employee whose employment was based on an arrangement with the employer whereby the employee notified the employer of his availability for further work in accordance with the requirements specified in the employer's induction manual.
20 The employee was advised his services were no longer required on the basis of operational requirements, not capacity or conduct. Following an unfair dismissal application, the finding at first instance was that there was no dismissal because the employee's employment was "suspended" pending reassignment to another position.
21 In reversing the decision on appeal the Full Bench, after noting there was no definition in the New South Wales Industrial Relations Act 1991 of "dismissed" or "dismissal", and, after examining the various dictionary definitions of "dismissed" and "dismissal", concluded:
"We apprehend no real issue may be taken with the ordinary meaning of the word dismissal' as so applied to s 245, and, indeed, it seems to us that it is in that defined sense of an employee being sent away from employment that unfair dismissal cases in industrial jurisprudence have been concerned ... Therefore we find no difficulty in accepting the ordinary meaning of dismissal' suggested by Brereton J in Ex parte Wurth; Re Tully ((1954) 55 SR (NSW) 47) as being `the termination of services by the employer without the employee's consent'; we would add that where an employee does not freely consent to the termination, understood in a broad sense, then the circumstances may still amount to a dismissal by the employer as a constructive dismissal ..."
16 After referring to this passage in his judgment in Grivell, Bleby J went on immediately to say:-
"I have no difficulty in adopting the same definition of the word when it is used in the Act, namely the termination of services by the employer without the employee's consent." (par 27)
17 Bleby J concluded that the word "dismissal" as used in the (South Australian) Act was to be given its ordinary and natural meaning and that this was only open to the one construction, namely that expressed above."
22 The respondent has filed a number of statements made by various respondent employees which have been tendered into evidence and upon which it relies in this application. These statements received by me today suggest that the respondent decided not to renew Mr Tubungbanua's contract as early as 12 January 2005 (refer to the affidavit of Yanni Hatzidis sworn 24 February, 2005 at paragraphs [2] and [6] and Mike Kelloway's affidavit sworn 23 February, 2005 at [1], [2] and [10]).
23 Those statements and other statements of employees of the respondent also suggest that the reason Mr Tubungbanua's contract was not renewed was because of his poor work performance and because there was insufficient work for another permanent employee (see Mr Kelloway's affidavit at [6]).
24 Another issue relevant to whether or not Mr Tubungbanua was dismissed from employment on 26 January 2005 (after his contract expired) is the nature of the contract of employment.
25 On 11 February 2005 when the application first came before me, three contracts of employment were tendered. The parties to those contracts were Mr Tubungbanua and the respondent. They represented the period of Mr Tubungbanua's employment with the respondent, that is, from 27 January 2004 until 26 January 2005. The most recent one gives rise to the present application.
26 That contract is dated 20 July 2004 and on its face offers Mr Tubungbanua a position as "distribution controller" for a period of six months on an annual base salary of $30,000, superannuation entitlements and a right to terminate, given by either party, by the giving of one week's notice (see paragraph 3 of the contract dated 20 July 2004.)
27 The NUW contends as its primary position that Mr Tubungbanua's employment was not in fact of a fixed term nature, but of an ongoing or continuous nature. There is some force in the submission. The contracts contain what appear to be an unqualified right of both parties to terminate without the necessity to give reasons. In some instances this may mean the series of contracts may not be for a fixed or specified term.
28 In Andersen v Umbakumba Community Council (1994) 56 IR 102 at 107 Von Doussa J examined the contract of employment which contained a right to terminate by either party on two weeks' notice. His Honour found the right to terminate was unqualified and was not conditional upon a breach of the term of the contract. This aspect of the contract provided a basis for the finding by his Honour that the contract could not be characterised as one of employment for a specified or fixed period of time.
29 Andersen v Umbakumba Community Council was cited with approval by Sundberg J in the Federal Court in Bruce v AWB Pty Limited No 2 (2000) 101 IR 296 at 298. (See also Ogilvie v Warlukurlanga Artists Aboriginal Association Inc (unreported AIRC Adelaide 28 August 2002 PR 921908 at [13])). Similarly here, the contracts contain a term conferring an unqualified right to terminate by either party on one week's notice.
30 In all of the circumstances, that is taking into account the definition of "dismissed" and "dismissal", the circumstances of Mr Tubungbanua's termination, and, the nature of the contracts of employment, I am of the view Mr Tubungbanua was dismissed on 26 January 2005 in the course of an industrial dispute. The preconditions for the invocation of s 137(1) (b) have therefore been satisfied.
Serious question to be tried
31 At this interim stage the principles to be applied are set out in Hill v Director General Department of Education and Training New South Wales (1998) 85 IR 201. The first consideration as to whether the interim orders should be granted is whether there is a serious question to be tried, or the applicant has made out a prima facie case.