DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Boral Cement Limited T/A Boral Cement
(AG2016/7918)

BORAL CEMENT LIMITED KOORAGANG EMPLOYEES ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT, 2016

Cement and concrete products
COMMISSIONER GREGORY	MELBOURNE, 11 JANUARY 2017

Application for approval of the Boral Cement Limited Kooragang Employees Enterprise Agreement, 2016.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Boral Cement Limited Kooragang Employees Enterprise Agreement, 2016 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Boral Cement Limited T/As Boral Cement. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] 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.

[3] The Australian Workers’ 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) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 18 January 2017. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 November 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter involved an application by Boral Cement Limited for the approval of the Boral Cement Limited Kooragang Employees Enterprise Agreement, 2016. The application was heard by the Fair Work Commission, which is the body responsible for the approval and enforcement of enterprise agreements in Australia. The dispute centred on whether the agreement complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009, particularly in relation to the terms and conditions it set for employees at the Kooragang Island cement plant.

The legal issues the court had to decide included whether the agreement contained mandatory provisions as required by the Fair Work Act, if the agreement was procedurally sound, and whether it provided for appropriate protections for employees. The Fair Work Act mandates that certain terms and conditions must be included in an enterprise agreement, and the court had to determine if these were present and adequately addressed in the proposed agreement. Additionally, the court examined whether the agreement was made in good faith and if it provided adequate protections for employees, particularly given the nature of the work at the cement plant.

In its decision, the Fair Work Commission found that the agreement met the necessary requirements under the Fair Work Act. It included the mandatory provisions required by the legislation and was procedurally sound, having been made in good faith with proper consultation between the parties. The court was satisfied that the agreement provided appropriate protections for employees and that it was in the best interests of the employees overall. Consequently, the Commission approved the agreement, finding that it complied with all legal requirements and was fair and reasonable.

The final orders of the court were to approve the Boral Cement Limited Kooragang Employees Enterprise Agreement, 2016, as lodged with the Fair Work Commission. This approval was effective from the date specified in the agreement and mandated its enforcement under the Fair Work Act.

Boral Cement Limited T/A Boral Cement

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established