R v Blackburn; Transport Workers' Union of Australia, Ex p [1952] HCA 45

High Court of Australia Dixon C.J. McTiernan, Williams, Webb and Kitto JJ. R v Blackburn; Transport Workers' Union of Australia, Ex p [1952] HCA 45

ORDER Reg. v. Blackburn and Another; Ex parte Transport Workers' Union of Australia. Order nisi discharged without prejudice to the question whether clause 4 (d) (iii) of the Transport Workers' (General) Award as amended or any part of that clause is a term of the award made without jurisdiction and void. No order as to costs. Reg. v. Galvin and Another; Ex parte Transport Workers' Union of Australia. Order nisi discharged. No order as to costs.

Cur. adv. vult.

The Court delivered the following written judgment:—

Aug. 15 Dixon C.J. McTiernan, Williams, Webb and Kitto JJ.

These are two orders nisi for writs of prohibition directed to conciliation commissioners. The first seeks a writ prohibiting further proceedings in respect of two matters. One matter consists in a particular clause in an existing award. It is clause 4 (d) (iii) in the Transport Workers' (General) Award 1950 as varied. The other matter is a pending application to vary the clause by adding a proviso. The second order nisi seeks a writ prohibiting proceedings in respect of one matter only, namely, a pending application for the variation of the same award by adding a new clause. In all three instances the ground for seeking to prohibit the proceedings is the same. The ground is that an infringement of s. 13 of the Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1904-1951 is involved because, in the case of the clause in the existing award, it does operate, and in the case of the variations applied for, they would operate to alter the standard hours of work in an industry or to alter the basic wage for adult males or the principles upon which it is computed. These are things which, under s. 13, a conciliation commissioner may not do.