Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009

If the FWC approves, under section 55 or 57, the submission of a proposed amalgamation to ballot, the AEC must, in relation to each of the existing organisations concerned in the amalgamation, conduct a secret postal ballot of the members of the organisation on the question whether they approve the proposed principal amalgamation.

If the scheme for the amalgamation contains a proposed alternative provision, the AEC must also conduct, at the same time and in the same way as the ballot under subsection (1), a ballot of the members of each of the existing organisations on the question or questions whether, if the proposed principal amalgamation does not take place, they approve the proposed alternative amalgamation or each proposed alternative amalgamation.

If, under subsection (2), the AEC is required to conduct 2 or more ballots of the members of an organisation at the same time, the same ballot paper is to be used for both or all the ballots.

A person conducting a ballot under subsection (2) need not count the votes in the ballot if the person is satisfied that the result of the ballot will not be required to be known for the purposes of this Act.

A copy of the outline of the scheme for the amalgamation as lodged under this Part, or, if the scheme has been altered or amended, a copy of the outline of the scheme as altered or amended, is to accompany the ballot paper sent to a person entitled to vote at the ballot.

In a ballot conducted under this section, each completed ballot paper must be returned to the AEC as follows:

the ballot paper must be in the declaration envelope provided to the voter with the ballot paper;

the declaration envelope must be in another envelope that is in the form prescribed by the regulations.

Subject to this section, a ballot conducted under this section is to be conducted as prescribed.

This section does not apply to an existing organisation concerned in the amalgamation if:

the FWC has granted the organisation an exemption under section 63 from the requirement that a ballot be held in relation to the proposed amalgamation; or

the FWC has approved under section 64 a proposal by the organisation for the submission of the amalgamation to a ballot that is not conducted under this section.