54Failure of negotiations

54 Failure of negotiations (1) If there is a failure of negotiations (including negotiations concerning the variation of an agreement), any person who is or would be a party to the negotiations may ask the regulator to appoint an inspector for the purposes of this section. (2) An inspector appointed under subsection (1) may decide— (a) the matters referred to in section 52 (3) (Negotiations for agreement for work group) or any of those matters which is the subject of the proposed variation (as the case requires); or (b) that work groups should not be determined or that the agreement should not be varied (as the case requires). (3) For the purposes of this section, there is a failure of negotiations if— (a) the person conducting the business or undertaking has not taken all reasonable steps to commence negotiations with the workers and negotiations have not commenced— (i) for a major construction project—when work on the project commences; or (ii) within 14 days after the day a request is made under section 50 (Request for election of health and safety representative); or (iii) within 14 days after the day a party to the agreement requests the variation of the agreement; or (b) agreement cannot be reached on a matter relating to the determination of a work group (or the variation of an agreement concerning a work group) within a reasonable time after negotiations commence. (4) A decision under this section is taken to be an agreement under section 52. (5) In this section: person conducting a business or undertaking includes the principal contractor for a major construction project. Subdivision 5.3.3 Multiple-business work groups