Application by Logan Ross
Not yet cited by other cases
Ratio
The application for a regulated labour hire arrangement order under s306E of the Fair Work Act was dismissed because the applicant failed to respond to the Commission's direction requiring demonstration that: (1) the City of Perth is a constitutional corporation or otherwise a regulated host under s306C; and (2) the City of Perth Salaried Workforce Agreement 2023 is a 'covered employment instrument' that applies to national system employees under s12. The Commission found the application had no reasonable prospects of success in the absence of submissions addressing these essential jurisdictional prerequisites.
Outcome
Against applicant
dismissed
Authority signal
Not yet cited by other cases
Signal-weighted score: 0.0
Derived from how later decisions have treated this case. Dark green = leading authority,
green = positively treated, grey = neutral or sparse data,
amber = caution, red = treated negatively.
Key facts · 6
- Logan Ross applied under s306E of the Fair Work Act for a regulated labour hire arrangement order
- The applicant was employed by HOBAN Recruitment Pty Ltd to perform work for the City of Perth
- The applicant identified the City of Perth Salaried Workforce Agreement 2023 as the host employment instrument
- The Commission directed the applicant on 30 January 2025 to submit written submissions addressing jurisdictional matters by 27 February 2025
- No response or submission was received from the applicant
- The applicant did not otherwise contact the Commission
Factors
For
- Application was properly made under s306E of the Fair Work Act with specified documents and notice
Against
- City of Perth is not expressly identified as a constitutional corporation
- City of Perth is not a Commonwealth entity, Commonwealth authority, territorial body, or entity in a referring State
- The City of Perth Agreement is registered under WA Industrial Relations Act 1979 s41, not a covered employment instrument under FW Act s12(a)–(c)
- No regulations prescribe WA-registered agreements as covered employment instruments under s12(e)
- Applicant failed to respond to Commission direction despite clear warning that application may be dismissed
- No demonstration that the host employer is a national system employer under s14 of the Fair Work Act
Concept tags · 4
Principles · 5
articulates para 2
A 'regulated host' for the purposes of s306E must satisfy one of the eight conditions in s306C, including being a constitutional corporation or an entity in a referring State
Test: Regulated host test under s306C FW Act
articulates para 2
A 'covered employment instrument' under s12 of the FW Act encompasses five categories: an enterprise agreement, workplace determination, Public Service Act determination, an instrument made under Commonwealth/State/Territory law providing terms and conditions for national system employees, or a prescribed instrument
Test: Covered employment instrument definition
articulates para 2
An agreement registered under s41 of the Industrial Relations Act 1979 (WA) is not a 'covered employment instrument' under ss12(a)–(c) of the Fair Work Act and falls outside the scope of regulated labour hire jurisdiction unless it qualifies under s12(d)
Test: Coverage of WA instruments in federal labour hire regime
articulates para 4
An application for a regulated labour hire arrangement order may be dismissed under s587(1)(c) of the Fair Work Act where the applicant fails to respond to a Commission direction and the application has no reasonable prospects of success
cites para 2
In order for the Commission to have power to make a regulated labour hire arrangement order under s306E of the FW Act, there must be a 'covered employment instrument' which 'applies' to the regulated host
Cases cited in this decision · 3
Cited
[2025] WAIRC 00012
— City of Perth v Western Australian Municipal, Administrative, Clerical and...
"…e following correspondence be sent to Mr Ross from my chambers (omitting formal parts): In your application, it is stated that the employment instrument which applies to the host, City of Perth, is the City of Perth...…"
Cited
(2024) 333 IR 249
(not in corpus)
"…ined in (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), (g) and (h) above. Therefore, you will need to demonstrate whether City of Perth is a constitutional corporation. Furthermore, as stated by a Full Bench of the Commission in...…"
Cited
[2024] FWCFB 299
— Callide Mine Union Enterprise Agreement 2021
"…), (e), (f), (g) and (h) above. Therefore, you will need to demonstrate whether City of Perth is a constitutional corporation. Furthermore, as stated by a Full Bench of the Commission in Application by the Mining and...…"
Archived text (974 words)
Application by Logan Ross [2025] FWC 1726 (19 June 2025)
Last Updated: 20 June 2025
[2025] FWC 1726
FAIR WORK COMMISSION
DECISION
Fair Work Act 2009
s.306E
—Application for a regulated labour hire arrangement
order
Application by Logan Ross
(LH2025/4)
JUSTICE HATCHER, PRESIDENT
SYDNEY,19 JUNE 2025
Application for a regulated labour hire arrangement order in respect of
HOBAN Recruitment Pty Ltd in relation to work performed for
the City of Perth
– failure to respond to Commission’s direction – application
dismissed –
Fair Work Act 2009
(Cth)
s 587(1)(c).
[1]
On 21
January 2025, Logan Ross applied to the Commission under
s 306E
of the
Fair Work Act 2009
(Cth) (FW Act) for a regulated labour hire arrangement
order in respect of his employment by HOBAN Recruitment Pty Ltd, (HOBAN) in
relation to work performed for the City of Perth. In his application, Mr Ross
names the ‘City of Perth Salaried Workforce Agreement
2023’ as the
host employment instrument that would apply to him were he to be employed
directly by the City of Perth.
[2]
On 30
January 2025, I directed that the following correspondence be sent to Mr Ross
from my chambers (omitting formal parts):
In your application, it is stated that the employment instrument which
applies to the host, City of Perth, is the
City of Perth Salaried Workforce
Agreement 2023
[2025] WAIRC 00012 (
City of Perth Agreement
).
Pursuant to
s 306C
of the
Fair Work Act 2009
(Cth) (
FW
Act
), a regulated host needs to be one of the following in order for the
Commission to make a regulated labour hire arrangement order:
(a) a constitutional corporation; or
(b) the Commonwealth; or
(c) a Commonwealth authority; or
(d) a person, so far as work is performed for the person in connection with
constitutional trade or commerce, and the work is of
a kind that would
ordinarily be performed by:
(i) a flight crew officer; or
(ii) a maritime employee; or
(iii) a waterside worker; or
(e) a body corporate incorporated in a Territory; or
(f) a person who carries on an activity (whether of a commercial, governmental
or other nature) in a Territory in Australia, so far
as work is performed for
the person in connection with the activity carried on in the Territory; or
(g) a person, so far as work is performed for the person in a Territory in
Australia; or
(h) any person in a State that is a referring State because of Division 2A
or 2B of Part 1-3.
City of Perth is not an entity as defined in (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), (g) and
(h) above. Therefore, you will need to demonstrate whether
City of Perth is a
constitutional corporation.
Furthermore, as stated by a Full Bench of the Commission in
Application by
the Mining and Energy Union
(2024) 333 IR 249
;
[2024]
FWCFB 299
in paragraph [12], in order for the Commission to have the power
to make an order under s 306E of the FW Act, there must be a ‘covered
employment instrument’ which ‘applies’ to the regulated host.
Section 12 of the FW Act defines ‘covered employment
instrument’ to encompass five categories of instrument, namely:
(a) an enterprise agreement; or
(b) a workplace determination; or
(c) a determination under
section 24
of the
Public Service Act 1999
that
applies to a class of APS employees in an Agency (within the meaning of that
Act); or
(d) an instrument made under any other law of the Commonwealth (other than this
Act), or of a State or a Territory, that provides
for the terms and conditions
of employment for a class of national system employees of:
(i) the Commonwealth or a State or Territory; or
(ii) an authority of the Commonwealth or of a State or Territory; or
(e) any other instrument relating to the employment of a class of national
system employees that:
(i) is made under a law of the Commonwealth (other than this Act) or a State or
Territory; and
(ii) is prescribed by the regulations.
The City of Perth Agreement is an agreement registered under
s 41
of the
Industrial Relations Act 1979
(WA). It is therefore not a ‘covered
employment instrument’ as defined in paragraphs (a), (b) or (c) of the
above definition.
No regulations have been made to give operative effect to
paragraph (e) of the definition. Therefore, in order for the application
to have
any prospects of success, the Commission will need to be satisfied that the City
of Perth Agreement falls within paragraph
(d) of the above definition. As an
essential element of this, it will need to be demonstrated that the City of
Perth Agreement provides
for the terms and conditions of employment of
national system employees
as defined in s 13 of the FW Act. That
will in turn require demonstration that the employer under the City of Perth
Agreement is a
national system employer
as defined in s 14 of the FW
Act.
You are directed make a written submission addressing the issues identified
above by way of email to
[email protected]
by
5:00 pm (AEDT) on Thursday, 27 February 2025
. You may wish to seek legal
advice or obtain legal representation when preparing your submission. In the
event that no submissions
are made, the Commission may dismiss your application
without further notice due to a lack of jurisdiction to consider your
application.
[3]
To
date, the Commission has not received a response to that correspondence. The
applicant has not otherwise contacted the Commission.
[4]
In
the absence of any further submissions as to the jurisdictional matters
identified in the Commission’s correspondence, I
find that the application
has no reasonable prospects of success. Accordingly, the application is
dismissed pursuant to s 587(1)(c)
of the FW Act.
PRESIDENT
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