ALDI loses appeal against Transport Workers’ Union over truck driver safety campaign

Supermarket giant ALDI has suffered another blow in court after taking a union to court over its campaign about truck driver safety.

ALDI has faced a double defeat in court.

ALDI has faced a double defeat in court, losing two appeals after its lawsuit against the Transport Workers’ Union over a campaign about truck driver safety was thrown out earlier this year.

The TWU emerged victorious on Tuesday from both appeals — one launched by ALDI, the other by the union — against the decision handed down in March.

The supermarket giant sued the union over flyers, media releases and public demonstrations alleging ALDI’s arrangements with trucking companies had endangered driver safety.

The lawsuit initially made six claims against the union, which were whittled down to two on the second last day of the hearing: engaging in misleading and deceptive conductive contrary to Australian consumer law, and injurious falsehood.

Truck drivers protested outside ALDI stores in 2017, accusing the supermarket giant of endangering driver safety through their contracts. ALDI took the Transport Workers’ Union to court over the campaign. Picture: Perry Duffin)

Both were rejected in March by Federal Court Justice Geoffrey Flick, who found while many of the TWU’s statements were at least “likely to mislead”, they were not made in trade or commerce, nor by a corporation.

He found ALDI’s claim could not succeed, also noting the union’s public safety concerns “were real” but so were the steps being taken by ALDI to address them.

Justice Flick also rejected the injurious falsehood claim, ruling there was no evidence of actual damage nor of malice.

ALDI was ordered to pay 50% of the TWU’s costs.

Both sides appealed the decision: ALDI, the result, and the TWU, the costs order.

The TWU emerged victorious on Tuesday from two separate appeals — one launched by ALDI, the other by the TWU — over the decision handed down in March. Picture: Matthew Vasilescu

On Tuesday three Federal Court judges ruled on both in favour of the TWU.

Justices Anthony Besanko, Mordecai Bromberg and Michael O’Bryan found the purpose of the TWU’s campaign was to put pressure on ALDI in the hopes of exacting a meeting.

It was not to damage ALDI’s trade — though that may be a side effect — and not trade or commerce activity under the law, they ruled.

They also found the TWU’s core purpose of industrial activity was not a commercial or business activity and that it was not a trading corporation for the purposes of the law.

The three judges agreed Justice Flick had made errors in his costs decision.

But they declined to make new orders, instead sending the matter back for Justice Flick to reconsider.