Fair Work Act 2009
Sections and provisions with full text and the judgments that cite each one.
Section 473 — Accepting or seeking payments relating to periods of industrial action
(1) An employee must not: (a) accept a payment from an employer if the employer would contravene section 470 by making the payment; or (b) ask the employer to make such a payment. Note 1: This…
Section 474 — Payments not to be made relating to certain periods of industrial action
(1) If an employee engaged, or engages, in industrial action that is not protected industrial action against an employer on a day, the employer must not make a payment to an employee in relation to:…
Section 475 — Accepting or seeking payments relating to periods of industrial action
(1) An employee must not: (a) accept a payment from an employer if the employer would contravene section 474 by making the payment; or (b) ask the employer to make such a payment. Note 1: This…
Section 476 — Other responses to industrial action unaffected
If an employee engaged, or engages, in industrial action against an employer, this Division does not affect any right of the employer, under this Act or otherwise, to do anything in response to the…
Section 477 — Applications by bargaining representatives
Application of this section (1) This section applies if a provision of this Part permits an application to be made by a bargaining representative of an employer that will be covered by a proposed…
Section 478 — Guide to this Part
This Part is about the rights of officials of organisations who hold entry permits to enter premises for purposes related to their representative role under this Act and under State or Territory OHS…
Section 479 — Meanings of employee and employer
In this Part, employee and employer have their ordinary meanings.
Section 480 — Object of this Part
The object of this Part is to establish a framework for officials of organisations to enter premises that balances: (a) the right of organisations to represent their members in the workplace, hold…
Section 481 — Entry to investigate suspected contravention
(1) A permit holder may enter premises and exercise a right under section 482 or 483 for the purpose of investigating a suspected contravention of this Act, or a term of a fair work instrument, that…
Section 482 — Rights that may be exercised while on premises
Rights that may be exercised while on premises (1) While on the premises, the permit holder may do the following: (a) inspect any work, process or object relevant to the suspected contravention; (b)…
Section 483 — Later access to record or document
Later access to record or document (1) The permit holder may, by written notice, require an affected employer to produce, or provide access to, a record or document (other than a non-member record or…
Section 483A — Entry to investigate suspected contravention relating to TCF award workers
(1) Subject to subsection (6), a permit holder may enter premises and exercise a right under section 483B or 483C for the purpose of investigating a suspected contravention of: (a) this Act, or a…
Section 483AA — Application to the FWC for access to non-member records
(1) The permit holder may apply to the FWC for an order allowing the permit holder to do either or both of the following: (a) require the occupier or an affected employer to allow the permit holder…
Section 483B — Rights that may be exercised while on premises
Rights that may be exercised while on premises (1) While on the premises, the permit holder may do the following: (a) inspect any work, process or object relevant to the suspected contravention; (b)…
Section 483C — Later access to record or document
Later access to record or document (1) The permit holder may, by written notice, require the occupier or an affected employer to produce, or provide access to, a record or document that is directly…
Section 483D — Entry onto other premises to access records and documents
(1) A permit holder who may enter premises under paragraph 483A(1)(a) for the purpose of investigating a suspected contravention may enter other premises and exercise a right under subsection (2) or…
Section 483E — Later access to record or document—other premises
Later access to record or document (1) The permit holder may, by written notice, require the occupier of the other premises to produce, or provide access to, a record or document that is directly…
Section 484 — Entry to hold discussions
A permit holder may enter premises for the purposes of holding discussions with one or more employees or TCF award workers: (a) who perform work on the premises; and (b) whose industrial interests…
Section 486 — Permit holder must not contravene this Subdivision
Subdivisions A, AA and B do not authorise a permit holder to enter or remain on premises, or exercise any other right, if he or she contravenes this Subdivision, or regulations prescribed under…
Section 487 — Giving entry notice or exemption certificate
Entry under Subdivision A or B (1) Unless the FWC has issued an exemption certificate for the entry, the permit holder must: (a) before entering premises under Subdivision A—give the occupier of the…
Section 488 — Contravening entry permit conditions
The permit holder must not contravene a condition imposed on the entry permit.
Section 489 — Producing authority documents
(1) If the permit holder has entered premises under Subdivision A or AA, the permit holder must produce his or her authority documents for inspection by the occupier of the premises, or an affected…
Section 490 — When right may be exercised
(1) The permit holder may exercise a right under Subdivision A, AA or B only during working hours. (2) The permit holder may hold discussions under section 484 only during mealtimes or other breaks.…
Section 491 — Occupational health and safety requirements
The permit holder must comply with any reasonable request by the occupier of the premises for the permit holder to comply with an occupational health and safety requirement that applies to the…
Section 492 — Location of interviews and discussions
(1) The permit holder must conduct interviews or hold discussions in the rooms or areas of the premises agreed with the occupier of the premises. (2) Subsection (3) applies if the permit holder and…
Section 492A — Route to location of interview and discussions
(1) The permit holder must comply with any reasonable request by the occupier of the premises to take a particular route to reach a room or area of the premises determined under section 492. Note:…
Section 493 — Residential premises
The permit holder must not enter any part of premises that is used mainly for residential purposes.
Section 494 — Official must be permit holder to exercise State or Territory OHS right
Official must be permit holder (1) An official of an organisation must not exercise a State or Territory OHS right unless the official is a permit holder. Note: This subsection is a civil remedy…
Section 495 — Giving notice of entry
(1) A permit holder must not exercise a State or Territory OHS right to inspect or otherwise access an employee record of an employee, unless: (a) he or she has given the occupier of the premises,…
Section 496 — Contravening entry permit conditions
In exercising a State or Territory OHS right, a permit holder must not contravene a condition imposed on his or her entry permit. Note: This section is a civil remedy provision (see Part 4-1).
Section 497 — Producing entry permit
A permit holder must not exercise a State or Territory OHS right unless the permit holder produces his or her entry permit for inspection when requested to do so by the occupier of the premises or an…
Section 498 — When right may be exercised
A permit holder may exercise a State or Territory OHS right only during working hours. Note: This section is a civil remedy provision (see Part 4-1).
Section 499 — Occupational health and safety requirements
A permit holder must not exercise a State or Territory OHS right unless he or she complies with any reasonable request by the occupier of the premises to comply with an occupational health and safety…
Section 500 — Permit holder must not hinder or obstruct
A permit holder exercising, or seeking to exercise, rights in accordance with this Part must not intentionally hinder or obstruct any person, or otherwise act in an improper manner. Note 1: This…
Section 501 — Person must not refuse or delay entry
A person must not refuse or unduly delay entry onto premises by a permit holder who is entitled to enter the premises in accordance with this Part. Note: This section is a civil remedy provision (see…
Section 502 — Person must not hinder or obstruct permit holder etc.
(1) A person must not intentionally hinder or obstruct a permit holder exercising rights in accordance with this Part, or otherwise act in an improper manner.. Note: This subsection is a civil remedy…
Section 503 — Misrepresentations about things authorised by this Part
(1) A person must not take action: (a) with the intention of giving the impression; or (b) reckless as to whether the impression is given; that the doing of a thing is authorised by this Part if it…
Section 504 — Unauthorised use or disclosure of information or documents
A person must not use or disclose information or a document obtained under section 482, 483, 483B, 483C, 483D or 483E in the investigation of a suspected contravention for a purpose that is not…
Section 505 — FWC may deal with a dispute about the operation of this Part
(1) The FWC may deal with a dispute about the operation of this Part, including a dispute about: (a) whether a request under section 491, 492A or 499 is reasonable; or (b) when a right of the kind…
Section 505A — FWC may deal with a dispute about frequency of entry to hold discussions
(1) This section applies if: (a) a permit holder or permit holders of an organisation enter premises under section 484 for the purposes of holding discussions with one or more employees or TCF award…
Section 506 — Contravening order made to deal with dispute
A person must not contravene a term of an order under subsection 505(2) or subsection 505A(3). Note: This section is a civil remedy provision (see Part 4-1).
Section 507 — FWC may take action against permit holder
(1) The FWC may, on application by an inspector or a person prescribed by the regulations, take the following action against a permit holder: (a) impose conditions on any entry permit issued to the…
Section 508 — FWC may restrict rights if organisation or official has misused rights
(1) The FWC may restrict the rights that are exercisable under this Part by an organisation, or officials of an organisation, if the FWC is satisfied that the organisation, or an official of the…
Section 509 — Contravening order made for misuse of rights
A person must not contravene a term of an order under subsection 508(1). Note: This section is a civil remedy provision (see Part 4-1).
Section 510 — When the FWC must impose conditions on, revoke or suspend entry permits
When the FWC must impose conditions on, revoke or suspend entry permits (1) The FWC must, under this subsection, impose conditions on, revoke or suspend each entry permit held by a permit holder if…
Section 511 — General rules for suspending entry permits
If the FWC suspends an entry permit, the suspension: (a) must be for a specified period; and (b) does not prevent the revocation of, or the imposition of conditions on, the entry permit during the…
Section 512 — FWC may issue entry permits
The FWC may, on application by an organisation, issue a permit (an entry permit) to an official of the organisation if the FWC is satisfied that the official is a fit and proper person to hold the…
Section 513 — Considering application
(1) In deciding whether the official is a fit and proper person, the FWC must take into account the following permit qualification matters: (a) whether the official has received appropriate training…
Section 514 — When the FWC must not issue permit
The FWC must not issue an entry permit to an official at a time when a suspension or disqualification, imposed by a court or other person or body: (a) applies to the official’s exercise of; or (b)…
Section 515 — Conditions on entry permit
(1) The FWC may impose conditions on an entry permit when it is issued. (2) In deciding whether to impose conditions under subsection (1), the FWC must take into account the permit qualification…