Qantas Airways Limited v Transport Workers Union of Australia

HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIAKIEFEL CJ,GAGELER, GORDON, EDELMAN, STEWARD, GLEESON AND JAGOT JJQANTAS AIRWAYS LIMITED & ANOR  APPELLANTSANDTRANSPORT WORKERS UNION OF AUSTRALIA         RESPONDENTQantas Airways Limited v Transport Workers Union of Australia[2023] HCA 27Date of Hearing: 9 & 10 May 2023Date of Judgment: 13 September 2023S153/2022ORDERAppeal dismissed.On appeal from the Federal Court of AustraliaRepresentationJ T Gleeson SC with T O Prince, N D Oreb and M F Caristo for the appellants (instructed by Herbert Smith Freehills)N C Hutley SC with M Gibian SC, C J Tran and P A Boncardo for the respondent (instructed by Maurice Blackburn Lawyers)T M Begbie KC with I M Sekler and N A Wootton for the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, intervening (instructed by Australian Government Solicitor)Notice:  This copy of the Court's Reasons for Judgment is subject to formal revision prior to publication in the Commonwealth Law Reports.CATCHWORDSQantas Airways Limited v Transport Workers Union of AustraliaIndustrial law (Cth) – Prohibition of taking adverse action against person to prevent exercise of workplace right – Workplace right – Where s 340(1)(b) of Fair Work Act2009 (Cth) provided that person must not take adverse action against another person to prevent exercise of workplace right – Where Qantas Airways Ltd made decision to outsource ground handling operations – Where outsourcing decision was adverse action in respect of affected employees – Where at time of outsourcing decision affected employees had no presently existing workplace right to organise and engage in protected industrial action and to participate in enterprise bargaining – Whether...