WA Prison Officers' Union of Workers v Minister for Corrective Services

[2025] WASCA 177

Western Australia Court of Appeal

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For Australian Law.

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Interrogate

Catchwords

1. Industrial Law
2. › Industrial agreements
3. › Construction of industrial agreement
4. › Annualised salary
5. › Whether annualised salary for Monday to Friday officers included component for public holiday work
6. › Whether work on public holiday constituted overtime
7. › Department of Justice Prison Officers' Industrial Agreement 2020, cl 7, cl 19.1, cl 21.1, cl 22.1, cl 32.4, cl 136.3, cl 136.4
1. Industrial Law
2. › Industrial agreements
3. › Construction of industrial agreement
4. › Ambiguity
5. › Recourse to surrounding circumstances
6. › Use of predecessor industrial agreements as context
7. › Whether history of prior agreements resolved ambiguity in current agreement
8. › Codelfa Construction Pty Ltd v State Rail Authority of New South Wales (1982) 149 CLR 337
1. Industrial Law
2. › Industrial agreements
3. › Construction of industrial agreement
4. › Specific provisions prevailing over general provisions
5. › Whether clause providing for Monday to Friday officers' salary was specific exception to general public holiday payment clause

Quick Take

Under the Department of Justice Prison Officers' Industrial Agreement 2020, Principal Officers classified as Monday to Friday are not required to work Public Holidays as part of their ordinary hours, and when directed to work on a Public Holiday are entitled to overtime rates at time and a half.