DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Australian Workers’ Union, The
(AG2015/6664)

BLEASDALE NATIONAL PERSONNEL PTY LTD / AWU NORTHCONNEX PROJECT CIVIL CONSTRUCTION GREENFIELDS AGREEMENT 2015

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER ROE	PERTH, 24 NOVEMBER 2015

Application for approval of the Bleasdale National Personnel Pty Ltd / AWU NorthConnex Project Civil Construction Greenfields Agreement 2015.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise Agreement known as the Bleasdale National Personnel Pty Ltd / AWU NorthConnex Project Civil Construction Greenfields Agreement 2015 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act). It has been made by The Australian Workers’ Union.

[2] This is a greenfields Agreement that meets the requirements of s.172(2)(b) of the Act. 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. In accordance with s.187(5)(a) of the Act, I am satisfied that The Australian Workers’ Union 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.

[3] The Agreement does not cover all of the employees of the employer however taking into account the factors in ss.186(3) and (3A) I am satisfied that the group of employees was fairly chosen.

[4] Pursuant to s.53(2)(b) I note the Agreement was made with The Australian Workers’ Union and that the Agreement covers this organisation.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 1 December 2015. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 May 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Australian Workers’ Union (AWU) applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Bleasdale National Personnel Pty Ltd / AWU NorthConnex Project Civil Construction Greenfields Agreement 2015. Bleasdale is a labour hire company, and the AWU is a trade union. The NorthConnex Project is a construction project in Sydney. The agreement in question provides for the terms and conditions of employment of workers engaged by Bleasdale and employed on the project. The AWU sought to have the agreement approved as a “single-employer” agreement, with a view to it eventually becoming a registered agreement. The legal issues before the Commission were whether the agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009, and whether it was in the interests of the workers to have it approved.

The Commission held that the agreement was made in good faith and was not intended to circumvent the Act. It was not a sham or a device to undermine the Act’s objectives. The agreement was made between Bleasdale and the AWU, and not with other employers, and so it was properly characterised as a single-employer agreement. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement was in the best interests of the workers, as it provided them with protections that were not available to them at common law. The Commission approved the agreement as a single-employer agreement.

Australian Workers’ Union, The

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established