Copy of Labour agreement between DIAC and Australia Western Railroad 2012
Dear Department of Immigration and Citizenship,
We have requested a copy of the abovementioned labour agreement from my employer Aurizon/QR NATIONAL/AUSTRALIAN RAILROAD GROUP, as well as the immigration agent Julie Williams @ Migration Downunder. They are refusing to supply me with a copy, alternatively the reference number of the agreement, and I believe I and my fellow employees are entitled to it.
Could you kindly assist me in this matter?
Yours faithfully,
Michael Mc Carthy
UNCLASSIFIED
Our references: FA 13/08/00301; ADF2013/25068
To – Mr Michael McCarthy
Dear Mr McCarthy
I am writing to you in response to your email of 1 August 2013,
purportedly under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth) and asking
that the Department of Immigration and Citizenship provide you with the
following:
…a copy of the abovementioned labour agreement from my employer Aurizon/QR
NATIONAL/AUSTRALIAN RAILROAD GROUP, as well as the immigration agent Julie
Williams @ Migration Downunder. They are refusing to supply me with a
copy, alternatively the reference number of the agreement, and I believe I
and my fellow employees are entitled to it.
The subject line of the email was ‘Freedom of Information request - Copy
of Labour agreement between DIAC and Australia Western Railroad 2012’.
The purpose of this email is to advise you that I consider the request to
be invalid under the FOI Act. I will explain my reasons in full below.
Requirements of the FOI Act
The requirements for a valid FOI request are set out in section 15(2) of
the Act, which provides that:
The request must:
(a) be in writing; and
(aa) state that the request is an application for the
purposes of this Act; and
(b) provide such information concerning the document as is
reasonably necessary to enable a responsible officer of the agency, or the
Minister, to identify it; and
(c) give details of how notices under this Act may be sent
to the applicant (for example, by providing an electronic address to which
notices may be sent by electronic communication).
The Act envisages that an agency and the applicant will, where necessary
and appropriate, engage in dialogue about the request. The Act also
envisages that there may be instances when an agency will wish to send a
formal legal notice to an applicant, for example, when the agency believes
that it would be a substantial and unreasonable diversion of resources to
process the request or intends to charge the applicant for processing the
request. In addition, the Act provides applicants with review rights which
are activated by the act of the agency ‘notifiying’ the applicant of the
decision.
In order to engage in this dialogue, the applicant must provide an address
through which the applicant intends to be contactable. It should be an
address through which the agency will be able to write to the applicant
and receive a response to the communication. It must also be an address
through which the agency can reasonably assume that legal notices will be
received, read and responded to by the applicant. This requirement has
been an element of a valid FOI request since the Act was first enacted in
1982.
Issues regarding your request
I am not satisfied that the email address you have provided meets the
requirement of ‘details of how notices under this Act may be sent to the
applicant’ (s.15(2)(c) of the Act. In particular, it does not appear to be
an address to which the agency could send a ‘notice’. The address you have
provided appears to be an address for publication of correspondence on the
internet.
Next steps
Please confirm that the email address that you have provided is an address
to which the Department can send you notices by close of business
Wednesday 14 August 2013. If you have not provided confirmation by that
time, I will close this request as invalid.
Yours sincerely
Angela O'Neil
Assistant Director
FOI & Privacy Policy
Department of Immigration and Citizenship
Telephone: (02) 6264 1382
Email: [1][email address]
UNCLASSIFIED
References
Visible links
1. mailto:[email address]
Dear FOI,
The email address that I have provided is an address
to which the Department can send me notices.
Yours sincerely,
Michael Mc Carthy
UNCLASSIFIED
Our references: FA 13/08/00301; ADF2013/25068
Dear Mr McCarthy
Thank you for confirming that you wish to wish to receive notices from DIAC via this email address and that DIAC can anticipate that you will respond to communications that are sent to you via this address. I am satisfied that the requirement in s.15(2)(c) of the Act is met and will progress your request accordingly.
Yours sincerely
Angela O'Neil
Assistant Director
FOI & Privacy Policy
Department of Immigration and Citizenship
Telephone: (02) 6264 1382
Email: [email address]
UNCLASSIFIED
Our references: FA 13/08/00301; ADF2013/25068
Dear Mr McCarthy
Re: Your Freedom of Information request
I am writing to inform you that I have been appointed as the authorised
decision maker on your FOI request for:
‘We have requested a copy of the abovementioned labour agreement from my
employer Aurizon/QR NATIONAL/AUSTRALIAN RAILROAD GROUP, as well as the
immigration agent Julie Williams @ Migration Downunder. They are refusing
to supply me with a copy, alternatively the reference number of the
agreement, and I believe I and my fellow employees are entitled to it.’
As part of DIAC's FOI service standard, I will update you every 14 days
regarding progress of your request. However, please do not hesitate to
contact me if you have any questions or wish to discuss the request in the
interim.
I have received the documents that relate to this request from the
relevant business area and I have begun my assessment of them.
Regards
Mel Heggart
FOI and Privacy Policy Section
Department of Immigration and Citizenship
Tel: (02) 62643131
UNCLASSIFIED
UNCLASSIFIED
Our reference: FA 13/08/00301; ADF2013/25068
Dear Mr McCarthy
I am writing to give you a progress update on your FOI request FA
13/08/00301 seeking the following:
‘We have requested a copy of the abovementioned labour
agreement from my employer Aurizon/QR NATIONAL/AUSTRALIAN RAILROAD GROUP,
as well as the immigration agent Julie Williams @ Migration Downunder.
They are refusing to supply me with a copy, alternatively the reference
number of the agreement, and I believe I and my fellow employees are
entitled to it.’
This email is to confirm that I have assessed the documents and have
identified those potentially in scope.
I am currently in consultation with the business regarding your request.
Please see the attached letter.
Please feel free to email me at this email address, or telephone me on the
number below if you wish to discuss any aspect of this request.
Kind Regards
Mel Heggart
FOI and Privacy Policy Section
Department of Immigration and Citizenship
Tel: (02) 62643131
UNCLASSIFIED
UNCLASSIFIED
Our references: FA 13/08/00301; ADF2013/25068 and FA 13/08/00863;
ADF2013/26938
Dear Mr McCarthy
I am writing to you about your two FOI requests submitted on the same day
(1 August 2013) for the same document, via the Right to Know website.
On 1 August 2013 at 7.18 pm you submitted an FOI request via this email
address: [1][FOI #333 email] (FA 13/08/00301).
The subject of the email was “Freedom of Information request - Copy of
Labour agreement between DIAC and Australia Western Railroad 2012”. The
scope of the first request was:
We have requested a copy of the abovementioned labour agreement from my
employer Aurizon/QR NATIONAL/AUSTRALIAN RAILROAD GROUP, as well as the
immigration agent Julie Williams @ Migration Downunder. They are refusing
to supply me with a copy, alternatively the reference number of the
agreement, and I believe I and my fellow employees are entitled to it.
On the same day, at 10.56 pm, you submitted another FOI request via a
second email address: [2][email address] (FA
13/08/00863).
The subject of the second email was “Freedom of Information request - Copy
of Labour agreement between DIAC and Australia Western Railroad 2012”. The
scope of the second FOI request was:
We have requested a copy of the abovementioned labour agreement from my
employer, as well as the immigration agent. They are refusing to supply me
with a copy, alternatively the reference number of the agreement, and I
believe I and my fellow employees are entitled to it.
Advice
This email is to advise you that the Department has treated the second
request as a duplicate of the first and has closed the request as invalid.
The Department will continue to process your first request.
Yours sincerely
Angela O'Neil
Assistant Director
FOI & Privacy Policy
Department of Immigration and Citizenship
Telephone: (02) 6264 1382
Email: [3][email address]
UNCLASSIFIED
References
Visible links
1. mailto:[FOI #333 email]
2. mailto:[email address]
3. mailto:[email address]
UNCLASSIFIED
Our references: FA 13/08/00301; ADF2013/25068 and FA 13/08/00863;
ADF2013/26938
Dear Mr McCarthy
I am writing to you about your two FOI requests submitted on the same day
(1 August 2013) for the same document, via the Right to Know website.
On 1 August 2013 at 7.18 pm you submitted an FOI request via this email
address: [1][FOI #333 email] (FA 13/08/00301).
The subject of the email was “Freedom of Information request - Copy of
Labour agreement between DIAC and Australia Western Railroad 2012”. The
scope of the first request was:
We have requested a copy of the abovementioned labour agreement from my
employer Aurizon/QR NATIONAL/AUSTRALIAN RAILROAD GROUP, as well as the
immigration agent Julie Williams @ Migration Downunder. They are refusing
to supply me with a copy, alternatively the reference number of the
agreement, and I believe I and my fellow employees are entitled to it.
On the same day, at 10.56 pm, you submitted another FOI request via a
second email address: [2][email address] (FA
13/08/00863).
The subject of the second email was “Freedom of Information request - Copy
of Labour agreement between DIAC and Australia Western Railroad 2012”. The
scope of the second FOI request was:
We have requested a copy of the abovementioned labour agreement from my
employer, as well as the immigration agent. They are refusing to supply me
with a copy, alternatively the reference number of the agreement, and I
believe I and my fellow employees are entitled to it.
Advice
This email is to advise you that the Department has treated the second
request as a duplicate of the first and has closed the request as invalid.
The Department will continue to process your first request.
Yours sincerely
Angela O'Neil
Assistant Director
FOI & Privacy Policy
Department of Immigration and Citizenship
Telephone: (02) 6264 1382
Email: [3][email address]
UNCLASSIFIED
References
Visible links
1. mailto:[FOI #333 email]
2. mailto:[email address]
3. mailto:[email address]
UNOFFICIAL
Our references: FA 13/08/00301; ADF2013/25068
Dear Mr McCarthy
I am writing in regards to your FOI request seeking:
‘We have requested a copy of the abovementioned labour agreement from my
employer Aurizon/QR NATIONAL/AUSTRALIAN RAILROAD GROUP, as well as the
immigration agent Julie Williams @ Migration Downunder. They are refusing
to supply me with a copy, alternatively the reference number of the
agreement, and I believe I and my fellow employees are entitled to it.’
This email is to advise you of my decision that you are liable to pay a
charge in respect of the processing of your FOI request in accordance with
s 29 of the FOI Act.
Please see the attached letter for further information.
How to pay:
The deposit or full payment can be paid by cheque, money order or credit
card.
Cheques and money orders should be made payable to "Collector of Public
Monies DIAC" and sent to
FOI & Privacy Policy Section
Department of Immigration & Citizenship
PO Box 25
BELCONNEN ACT 2616
AUSTRALIA
Should you choose to pay by credit card, please fill out the attached
credit card authorisation form and forward to FOI & Privacy Policy Section
at the above address, or email to [1][email address]. Please advise
whether you wish to pay the deposit only or the full charge.
Mel Heggart
FOI and Privacy Policy Section
Department of Immigration and Citizenship
Tel: (02) 62643131
UNOFFICIAL
References
Visible links
1. mailto:[email address]
UNCLASSIFIED
Our references: FA 13/08/00301; ADF2013/25068
Dear Mr McCarthy
I refer to your request FA 13/08/00301, received on 1 August 2013 for the
following:
‘We have requested a copy of the abovementioned labour agreement from my
employer Aurizon/QR NATIONAL/AUSTRALIAN RAILROAD GROUP, as well as the
immigration agent Julie Williams @ Migration Downunder. They are refusing
to supply me with a copy, alternatively the reference number of the
agreement, and I believe I and my fellow employees are entitled to it.’
I have made a final decision on this request.
Please see attached my signed Decision Letter, Decision Record & Schedule
of Documents and documents.
This request has now been closed.
Regards
Mel Heggart
FOI and Privacy Policy Section
Department of Immigration and Border Protection
Tel: (02) 62643131
UNCLASSIFIED