A self-represented aged pensioner has lost his bid to revive a class action against the Department of Social Services over its real estate asset testing for pensions, with a judge saying that a legal practitioner must represent group members.Â
On the first day of trial in parallel class actions and regulatory proceedings, the Fair Work Ombudsman panned the payment systems adopted by Woolworths and Coles for salaried managers, saying they were âentirely foreignâ to the industrial award and that the supermarket giants had âno meaningful proper recordsâ for overtime.Â
Two former staffers of senator Jacqui Lambie who represented themselves in an unsuccessful unfair dismissal case have been hit with nearly $50,000 in legal costs each due to their âunreasonable conductâ in the case, including attempts to turn the proceeding into âa trial by media.â
Supermarket giant Woolworths has denied the Fair Work Ombudsman is entitled to seek compensation for its underpayment of staff, saying its $330 million remediation to affected employees fully answers the regulator’s case.