86.—(1) If the Authority or a person who is affected by a collective agreement claims that a provision of that agreement is null and void by virtue of section 9, the Authority or that person may refer the question of that agreement to the F160[Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission]; and in this section (and section 87) the Authority or the person making such a reference is referred to as “the complainant”.

(2) For the purposes of this section (and section 87)—

(a) the expression “collective agreement” shall be taken to include an order or agreement falling within paragraph (b) or (c) of section 9 (3),

(b) a person is affected by a collective agreement if that person is an employee whose remuneration or whose conditions of employment are, in whole or in part, governed by the agreement (or any part of it), and

(c) “the respondents” means the parties to the agreement, other than (where relevant) the complainant.

(3) Subject to subsection (4), where a collective agreement is referred to the F160[Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission] under this section, the F160[Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission] shall consider whether the question of the possible nullity of a provision of the agreement appears to be one which could be resolved by mediation and—

(a) if the F160[Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission] considers that the question could be so resolved, the F160[Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission] shall refer the agreement to an F161[mediation officer] for mediation in accordance with section 87, and

(b) if the F160[Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission] considers that the question could not be so resolved, the F160[Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission] shall proceed in accordance with paragraph (b) or (c) of subsection (4).

(4) If the complainant or the respondents object to a reference under subsection (3)(a) (or if section 78(7) applies in accordance with subsection (6)) the Director—

(a) shall not exercise the powers under subsection (3)(a),

(b) shall investigate the agreement and, for that purpose, hear all persons appearing to the F160[Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission] to be interested and desiring to be heard, and

(c) shall issue a decision in accordance with section 87,

and subsections (3) and (4) of section 79 shall apply in relation to an investigation by the F160[Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission] under this subsection as they apply in relation to an investigation by the F160[Director General of the Workplace Relations Commission] under that section.

(5) Mediation under subsection (3) or an investigation under subsection (4) shall be conducted in private.

(6) Where a collective agreement is referred for mediation under subsection (3), subsections (5) to (7) of section 78 shall apply as they apply where a case which has been referred to an F161[mediation officer] under section 78(1) but, for the purpose of that application—

(a) references in those subsections to the complainant and the respondent shall be construed as references to the complainant and the respondents, within the meaning of this section, and

(b) section 78(7) shall have effect as if, for the words following paragraph (c) thereof, there were substituted “the Director shall investigate the matter of the agreement under section 86(4)”.