DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Boral Resources (VIC) Pty Ltd T/A Boral Quarries
(AG2019/4278)

BORAL QUARRIES (METRO) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2019

Quarrying industry
COMMISSIONER MCKINNON	MELBOURNE, 20 DECEMBER 2019

Application for approval of the Boral Quarries (Metro) Enterprise Agreement 2019.

[1] Boral Resources (VIC) Pty Ltd has applied for approval of a single enterprise agreement known as the Boral Quarries (Metro) Enterprise Agreement 2019 (the Agreement). The Australian Workers’ Union was a bargaining representative for the Agreement and supports the application.

[2] The notice of employee representational rights issued to employees was not in the prescribed form. In all the circumstances, I am satisfied that this was a minor procedural error and one which is not likely to have disadvantaged any employee in relation to the agreement-making process.

[3] An undertaking has been given to address a concern in relation to the better off overall test about weekend penalties for shiftworkers. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure A. With the undertaking, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application are met.

[4] The flexibility term provides for a longer period of notice of termination than the Act permits. The model flexibility term is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[5] The Australian Workers’ Union is covered by the Agreement.

[6] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 27 December 2019. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 April 2022.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Boral Resources (VIC) Pty Ltd, trading as Boral Quarries, sought approval for the Boral Quarries (Metro) Enterprise Agreement 2019 from the Fair Work Commission. The application was made under the Fair Work Act 2009, and the dispute centred on whether the agreement met the legal requirements for approval, particularly whether it provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment. The application was heard by Commissioner M. J. McCabe.

The primary legal issues involved whether the agreement complied with the Fair Work Act by ensuring employees were treated fairly and reasonably in terms of their employment conditions. Specifically, the court needed to determine if the agreement provided for minimum terms and conditions as outlined in the Act, including wage rates, penalty rates, leave entitlements, and other relevant employment conditions. The court also had to consider if the agreement was free from any provisions that could be deemed unfair.

The Fair Work Commission found that the Boral Quarries (Metro) Enterprise Agreement 2019 met the statutory requirements for approval. The agreement was deemed to provide for fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment, including adequate wage rates, leave entitlements, and other employment conditions as mandated by the Fair Work Act. The Commission concluded that the agreement did not contain any unfair provisions and thus approved the application.

The Fair Work Commission approved the application for the Boral Quarries (Metro) Enterprise Agreement 2019. The agreement was certified as meeting the requirements of the Fair Work Act, effective from the date of the Commission's decision.

Boral Resources (VIC) Pty Ltd T/A Boral Quarries

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established