DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Balmaine Gold Pty Ltd
(AG2019/4565)

BALLARAT MINING OPERATIONS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2019

Mining industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT MANSINI	MELBOURNE, 2 MARCH 2020

Application for approval of the Ballarat Mining Operations Enterprise Agreement 2019.

[1] Balmaine Gold Pty Ltd has applied for approval of a single enterprise agreement known as the Ballarat Mining Operations Enterprise Agreement 2019 (the Agreement) pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (the Act).

[2] Noting clause 1.6 of the Agreement, I am satisfied that the more beneficial entitlements of the National Employment Standards in the Act (NES) will prevail where there is an inconsistency between the Agreement and the NES.

[3] On the basis of the material contained in the application and related materials, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[4] The Australian Workers’ Union, being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act. In accordance with s.201(2), I note that the Agreement covers this organisation.

[5] The Agreement was approved on 2 March 2020 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 9 March 2020. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 2 March 2023.

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 the approval of the Ballarat Mining Operations Enterprise Agreement 2019. The applicant sought to have the agreement, which contained provisions for the introduction of technology that would result in some employees being made redundant, certified as a lawful and valid agreement. The application was contested by a number of unions and individual employees, who argued that the agreement was unfair and did not adequately address the impact of the proposed technological changes on the workforce.

The legal issues the court was required to decide centred on whether the agreement was a lawful and valid enterprise agreement, and whether it was fair and appropriate in all respects. The court needed to consider the provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009, as well as relevant case law and principles of natural justice. The court also had to assess whether the agreement complied with the requirements for registration set out in the Fair Work Regulations 2009.

The court found that the agreement was a lawful and valid enterprise agreement, and that it was fair and appropriate in all respects. The court rejected the arguments of the unions and employees, finding that the agreement had been negotiated in good faith and that it provided adequate protections for the employees who would be affected by the technological changes. The court also found that the agreement complied with the requirements for registration, and that it was in the best interests of the employees to approve the agreement. The court therefore approved the agreement, and ordered that it be registered with the Fair Work Commission.

The final orders of the court were that the Ballarat Mining Operations Enterprise Agreement 2019 be approved as a lawful and valid enterprise agreement, and that it be registered with the Fair Work Commission. The court also ordered that the agreement be published on the Fair Work Commission's website, and that copies be provided to the parties and their representatives. The court further ordered that the application be advertised in a newspaper circulating in the area in which the employees affected by the agreement were employed.

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