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The Fair Work Commission has rejected arguments that it wasn't appropriate or fair to make 'same job, same pay' orders for more than 2,000 workers, in a major ruling on the provisions that will add about $66 million to the affected employers' wages bills.

The full bench was considering applications from the MEU and AMWU for regulated labour hire arrangement (RLHA) orders at 13 mining sites operated by BM Alliance Coal Operations Pty Ltd (BMA), of which BHP Coal is the largest shareholder.

A key aspect of the decision involved whether BHP subsidiaries OS Maintenance and OS Production were providing labour or a service.

As reported earlier today, employer groups largely view the ruling as cause for concern...