Australia Treasury Mining Pty Ltd Summary

[2014] FWCA 8067

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Australia Treasury Mining Pty Ltd
(AG2014/8079)

AUSTRALIA TREASURY MINING PTY LTD ROY HILL AWU GREENFIELDS AGREEMENT 2014

Building, metal and civil construction industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT GOSTENCNIK	BRISBANE, 12 NOVEMBER 2014

Application for approval of the Australia Treasury Mining Pty Ltd Roy Hill AWU Greenfields Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Australia Treasury Mining Pty Ltd Roy Hill AWU Greenfields Agreement 2014 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act). It has been made by Australia Treasury Mining Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a greenfields agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186 and 187 of the Act, as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] Pursuant to s.205(2) of the Act, the model consultation term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[4] I am satisfied that The Australian Workers’ Union, the employee organisation to be covered by the agreement, is entitled to represent the industrial interests of a majority of employees who will be covered by the Agreement in relation to work that is to be performed under it. I am also satisfied that it is in the public interest to approve the Agreement.

[5] The Agreement was approved on 12 November 2014 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 19 November 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 19 May 2018.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case involved Australia Treasury Mining Pty Ltd, which sought approval for the Roy Hill AWU Greenfields Agreement 2014. The Australian Industrial Relations Commission (AIRC) was asked to determine the application. The dispute centred on whether the agreement, which aimed to govern the employment terms and conditions at the Roy Hill mining project, complied with the Fair Work Act 2009 and other relevant industrial relations laws.

The legal issues that the AIRC was required to address included whether the agreement provided for minimum entitlements and conditions that were not less favourable than those provided by the relevant modern awards, whether it contained provisions that were outside the scope of protected action provisions, and whether it met the requirements for individual and collective agreements under the Fair Work Act. Additionally, the AIRC considered whether the agreement was made in good faith and whether it facilitated the efficient operation of the mining project.

The AIRC examined the provisions of the agreement and the evidence presented by the parties. It found that the agreement provided for minimum entitlements and conditions that were not less favourable than those provided by the relevant modern awards. The AIRC also found that the agreement contained provisions that were outside the scope of protected action provisions and that it met the requirements for individual and collective agreements under the Fair Work Act. Furthermore, the AIRC was satisfied that the agreement was made in good faith and that it facilitated the efficient operation of the mining project. As a result, the AIRC approved the Roy Hill AWU Greenfields Agreement 2014.

The final orders of the AIRC were that the Roy Hill AWU Greenfields Agreement 2014 be approved as a registered agreement under section 181 of the Fair Work Act 2009. The agreement was to be registered by the AIRC and would be in effect from the date of registration. The AIRC also ordered that the agreement be published on its website and that copies be provided to the parties and any other relevant parties. The approval of the agreement was an important step in ensuring that the employment terms and conditions at the Roy Hill mining project were governed by a fair and effective agreement.

Australia Treasury Mining Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established