146A   Commission may exercise certain functions conferred on it by agreement

(1)  This section applies to any of the following kinds of dispute if the parties to the dispute have agreed in writing (the referral agreement) that the dispute (or disputes of a class to which the dispute belongs) be resolved by the Commission:

(a)  a dispute about any conditions of employment or industrial matter between an industrial organisation of employees and one or more employers (or industrial organisations of employers),

(b)  a dispute of the kind referred to in section 332 (2) or (3) or a dispute about a claim for compensation of the kind referred to in section 346 between:

(i)  an industrial organisation of employees and one or more employers (or industrial organisations of employers), or

(ii)  an association of contract carriers and one or more principal contractors (or associations of employing contractors), or

(iii)  an association of contract drivers and one or more bailors (or associations of employing contractors).

(2)  A party to a dispute to which this section applies may apply to the Commission for the exercise by the Commission of such functions with respect to the resolution of the dispute as may be specified in the referral agreement.

(3)  On any such application, the Commission has and may exercise such functions with respect to the resolution of the dispute as may be specified in the referral agreement.

(4)  Without limiting subsections (2) and (3), the functions of the Commission with respect to the resolution of a dispute to which this section applies that may be specified in a referral agreement include the following:

(a)  the conciliation of the dispute,

(b)  the arbitration of the dispute,

(c)  the granting of a remedy or other relief of the kind provided by Part 6, 7 or 9 of Chapter 2,

(d)  the granting of a remedy or other relief of the kind provided by Part 7 of Chapter 6,

(e)  the determination of any other issue or question arising in the dispute.

(5)  The regulations may make provision for or with respect to the application of the provisions of this Act (with such modifications, if any, as may be prescribed by the regulations) to the exercise of functions conferred on the Commission by referral agreements.

(6)  Subject to any regulations made for the purposes of subsection (5), the Commission is to be constituted by:

(a)  except as provided by paragraph (b)—a single member of the Commission, or

(b)  if the function to be exercised is a function of the kind referred to in section 153 (1)—the Commission in Court Session.

(7)  Subject to this Act and any regulations made for the purposes of subsection (5) (and without limiting the generality of section 185), rules of the Commission may be made for or with respect to the practice and procedure of the Commission in the exercise of functions conferred on it by referral agreements.

(8)  Nothing in this section makes any order, determination or other decision of the Commission in respect of a dispute binding on the parties to the dispute unless the referral agreement operates (apart from this section) to make any such order, determination or decision binding on the parties.

(9)  Despite the provisions of Part 7 (Appeals and references to Commission) of Chapter 4, a party to a dispute in respect of which the Commission has made a decision in exercise of a function conferred by a referral agreement may not appeal against the decision under that Part unless the agreement provides that the party may appeal such a decision.

(10)  The functions conferred on the Commission by or under this section are in addition to, and do not derogate from, any other function of the Commission.

(11)  In this section:

association of contract carriers, association of contract drivers, association of employing contractors, bailor and principal contractor have the same meanings as they have for the purposes of Chapter 6.

modification includes addition, exception, omission or substitution.