Australian Building Construction Employees and Builders' Labourers' Federation (Queensland Branch) Union of Employees

[2013] FWCA 164

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

Australian Building Construction Employees and Builders' Labourers' Federation (Queensland Branch) Union of Employees
(AG2012/12116)

THE AUSTRALIAN BUILDING CONSTRUCTION EMPLOYEES' AND BUILDERS LABOURERS FEDERATION (QUEENSLAND) UNION OF EMPLOYEES CERTIFIED AGREEMENT 2012

Clerical industry
COMMISSIONER BOOTH	BRISBANE, 14 JANUARY 2013

Application for approval of The Australian Building Construction Employees' and Builders Labourers Federation (Queensland) Union of Employees Certified Agreement 2012.

[1] An application has been made for approval of a single enterprise agreement known as The Australian Building Construction Employees' and Builders Labourers Federation (Queensland) Union of Employees Certified Agreement 2012 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) by Australian Building Construction Employees and Builders' Labourers' Federation (Queensland Branch) Union of Employees.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] As the consultation term does not meet the requirements of s.205 of the Act, the model consultation term is taken to be a term of the Agreement and is attached to the Agreement.

[4] The Australian Municipal, Administrative, Clerical and Services Union, being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s.201(2) of the Act I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 21 January 2013. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 December 2015.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicant union, the Australian Building Construction Employees and Builders' Labourers' Federation (Queensland Branch) Union of Employees, applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of a certified agreement. The agreement in question was The Australian Building Construction Employees' and Builders Labourers Federation (Queensland) Union of Employees Certified Agreement 2012. The union sought to have this agreement approved as a safety net award, providing a baseline for the employment conditions of workers within the construction industry in Queensland.

The primary legal issue before the Commission was whether the certified agreement met the statutory requirements for approval as a safety net award. Specifically, the Commission had to determine whether the agreement was "in the interests of the national system of industrial relations." This involved assessing whether the agreement was consistent with the principles of the national system of industrial relations, including whether it provided adequate protections for employees and whether it was reasonably proportionate to the circumstances of the industry.

In deciding the application, the Commission considered the provisions of the agreement and their alignment with the principles of the national system of industrial relations. The Commission found that the agreement provided adequate protections for employees and was reasonably proportionate to the circumstances of the construction industry in Queensland. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement met the statutory requirements for approval as a safety net award. The Commission approved the application, thereby confirming The Australian Building Construction Employees' and Builders Labourers Federation (Queensland) Union of Employees Certified Agreement 2012 as a safety net award.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established