DECISION

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

Balmaine Gold Pty Ltd
(AG2015/5427)

BALLARAT MINING OPERATIONS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2015

Mining industry
SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT HAMBERGER	SYDNEY, 16 SEPTEMBER 2015

Application for approval of the Ballarat Mining Operations Enterprise Agreement 2015.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Ballarat Mining Operations Enterprise Agreement 2015 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act).

[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] The The Australian Workers’ Union (AWU), being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, have given notice under s.183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s.201(2) of the Act I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and will operate from 23 September 2015. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 22 September 2019.

SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Balmaine Gold Pty Ltd applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Ballarat Mining Operations Enterprise Agreement 2015. The application was brought by the employer, Balmaine Gold, and the respondents included the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union and several employees of the company. The dispute centred on the terms of the proposed enterprise agreement and whether it complied with the relevant legislative requirements for approval.

The primary legal issues before the Commission were whether the agreement was genuinely a bargain between the employer and the employees, whether it complied with the Fair Work Act 2009, and whether it met the criteria for a certified agreement. Specifically, the Commission had to determine if the agreement was made in good faith, if it was free from improper influence or coercion, and if it provided for the proper management of the enterprise.

The Commission found that the agreement was genuinely a bargain between the parties, made in good faith and free from improper influence or coercion. It also concluded that the agreement met the criteria for a certified agreement under the Fair Work Act. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement provided for the proper management of the enterprise and that it was in the best interests of the employees. Consequently, the Commission approved the Ballarat Mining Operations Enterprise Agreement 2015.

The Fair Work Commission granted the application and approved the Ballarat Mining Operations Enterprise Agreement 2015. This decision means that the terms and conditions set out in the agreement will now apply to the employees covered by the agreement. The approval of the agreement ensures that it is legally binding and enforceable between the employer and the employees.

Balmaine Gold Pty Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established