Result

defendant. Application refused. The Commission declined to insert a provision for a 40-hour week in the award, maintaining the existing 44-hour standard working week.

Key principles

• The Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Commission held that, in determining whether a proposed award provision for a 40-hour week should be made, it was necessary to...
• The Commission determined that the appropriate test was whether the industry could sustain the reduction in standard hours without detriment to the national economy, to the...
• The Commission found that the gas industry in South Australia had not demonstrated the economic capacity to support a 40-hour week at that time, having regard to the...
• The Commission held that the maintenance of existing standard hours (44 hours per week) was justified where the economic evidence indicated that a reduction would require...

Issues before the court

• Whether the Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Commission should grant an award provision reducing standard working hours from 44 to 40 hours...
• Whether the 'economic capacity' test requires consideration of the industry's ability to pass on increased costs to consumers