WESTERN AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS COMMISSION. Industrial Relations Act 1979. William Game (Applicant) and The Australian Electrical, Electronics, Foundry and Engineering Union—Western Australian Branch and Philip Pinto (Respondents). No. 662 of 1995. BEFORE HIS HONOUR THE PRESIDENT PJ SHARKEY. 28 July 1995. Reasons for Decision. THE PRESIDENT: This is an application under s.66 of the Industrial Relations Act 1979 (as amended) (hereinafter re- ferred to as "the Act"). Hie applicant is the Secretary of the respondent organisation, and, I infer, a member. The firstnamed respondent was, at all material times, an or- ganisation registered under the Act. The secondnamed re- spondent, Mr Philip Pinto, is an officer of the State Electoral Commission. It was not in issue that I had jurisdiction to en- tertain this application because Mr Game is the Secretary, and, I infer, a member, and the organisation is registered under the Act as an organisation. The respondent organisation did not oppose the application herein, and, in fact, it is fair to say, supported it. The applica- tion is one which sought an order that so much of the rules of the applicant as required elections to be held during 1995 should be suspended until the hearing and determination of application Nos 658 and 659 of 1995, and for such other or- ders as the President might think fit. The facts were not in dispute. There were facts which I de- rived from the evidence of Mr Derek Forster, the President of the abovenamed respondent organisation, who swore an affi- davit on 6 July 1995, which was filed herein. I accept Mr Forster's evidence which was not disputed. By rules 12.1.1, 12.1.4 and 12.2.1 there is a requirement that there be elections of various office bearers "during the third quarter of the year commencing in 1995". A Returning Officer had been appointed and he caused an advertisement to be placed giving notice of the election timetable in the pa- per. Hiis was on 23 June 1995. Nominations opened on Mon- day, 3 July 1995 and closed on Monday, 10 July 1995 with a ballot scheduled to open on 7 August 1995 and close on 28 August 1995. There is no doubt that the respondent organisation has an obligation under its rules to bring about an election of rel- evant office bearers and it has acted in accordance with that obligation. Mr Game's application and the respondents' sup- port of it were based on a number of facts. In application No 659 of 1995 the respondent organisation had applied to amend its rules, including rule 12.—Elections. The alterations sought would effect the substitution of the election provisions of the rules of the Communications, Electrical, Plumbing Union (Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia) Western Australian Branch ("the Federal branch"). A notice of this proposed alteration was circulated to members, together with the relevant explanation. The alterations would seem to be directed to bringing the rules of the State organisation in line with those of the Federal organisation. There was a further application which has been filed by the respondent organisation, and in that application. No 658 of 1995, it applies for a certificate under s.71(5) of the Act. As a result, the Federal branch will become its counterpart Federal body, and the provisions of the Act relating to elections for office within a State organisation will not apply in relation to the offices in the State organisation. Indeed, the persons hold- ing office in the State organisation pursuant to the proposed new rule 5.3.1.9 shall be for all purposes the purposes of the State organisation. That is explained in exhibit DF3 which is the notice sent to members. The Executive Committee of the State organisation has con- sidered the matter and formally does not oppose the applica- tion because:— (1) Every member of the State organisation was on 14 June 1995 posted a copy of the notice which is annexure DF3 to the affidavit of Mr Forster. The reasons given for the alteration to the rules is to en- able State officials of the Federal organisation to also be the State organisation's officials. (2) The Federal and the State organisations operate out of the same office at present, and share office hold- ers. The Federal branch is also conducting elections in the next month. Mr Forster has deposed that, from his personal knowledge, he is aware that important offices of the abovenamed respond- ent organisation and the Federal branch are likely to be con- tested, and it is the view of the Executive Committee of the abovenamed respondent organisation that if different individu- als were to be elected as officers of the State organisation to those elected as officers of the Federal branch there would be significant potential disruption to the orderly management of both the State organisation and the Federal branch. In addition, if the proposed alterations to the rules were au- thorised, and some of die offices in the State organisation to be filled by the proposed election would cease to exist, and, in particular, too, Vice-Presidential positions would be elimi- nated, as would numerous conference delegate positions. I was concerned, and expressed my concern to the parties, that the orders I was invited to make could be used to prevent persons standing for office in the State organisation when members were not aware that this was occurring. As a result, I asked that there be filed a copy of an article in the CEPU Engineering and Electrical Division WA Newsletter for Win- ter 1995. That was subsequently filed. The article headed "Changing Times" does not make it clear that the respondent organisation was seeking an order from this Commission that the elections for office in the State organisation, the respond- ent organisation, be postponed until application Nos 658 and 659 of 1995 are heard and determined. I am and remain anxious that membership be frilly cogni- sant of the fact that an application had been made to this Com- mission, and granted, to postpone the State elections. Then, if parties disagree, they can make the appropriate application under s.66 of the Act. However, under s.26 of the Act it is appropriate to make the orders sought because:— (1) The election would be unnecessarily held if the ap- plications are successful. (2) If the applications are successful, a matter which should be determined in the not so distant future, one would think, then the organisation will have been saved expense and possible disruption by virtue of the abolition of offices which were filled by a State election for a short period. (3) The democratic control of the organisation is not de- tracted from thereby. (4) The members of the organisation have been apprised of this course, but not of the precise matter of the postponement of the election. (5) The Federal branch will be holding elections in the next month so the delay should not be inordinate.. (6) My order stands only until October 1995 when the matter can be brought on for mention or even ear- lier. The interests of the respondent organisation and its mem- bers are served, on the evidence, by such orders. I am of opin- ion that the matter should be brought on for mention earlier and that I be addressed of the terms of an order specifically requiring that the membership be informed that there has been a postponement of the State election and the reasons therefor. I will therefore be listing the matter for mention with a view to hearing then, or at a future date, the submissions of the parties as to the orders I should make for the proper publica- tion of this notice to all members. I should add that there was no opposition to the course taken by me from Mr Pinto. Appearances: Mr D H Schapper (of Counsel), by leave, and with him Mr W Game on behalf of the applicant. Mr R Farrell (of Counsel), by leave, and with him Mr D Forster on behalf of The Australian Electrical, Electronics, Foundry and Engineering Union—Western Australian Branch. Mr P Pinto, Returning Officer for The Australian Electri- cal, Electronics, Foundry and Engineering Union—Western Australian Branch, on his own behalf. Mr R Farrell (of Counsel), by leave, and with him Mr D Forster on behalf of The Australian Electrical, Electronics, Foundry and Engineering Union—Western Australian Branch, and Mr P Pinto, Returning Officer for The Australian Electrical, Elec- tronics, Foundry and Engineering Union—Western Austral- ian Branch, on his own behalf, and whereas the equity, good conscience and substantial merits of the matter require that I make the following orders, it is this day, the 14th day of Au- gust 1995, ordered and directed as follows:— 1. THAT the respondent organisation shall publish a notice to its members in the Public Notices Column of "The West Australian" Newspaper within seven days of the 14th day of August 1995 in the follow- ing form:— "POSTPONEMENT OF ELECTION FOR WA STATE UNION" Following an application by Bill Game, the Secre- tary of the Australian Electrical, Electronics, Foun- dry and Engineering Union—Western Australian Branch ("the State Union"), the