Brunel Technical Services Pty Ltd Summary

[2013] FWC 9398

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Brunel Technical Services Pty Ltd
(AG2013/11359)

DEPUTY PRESIDENT GOSTENCNIK

MELBOURNE, 29 NOVEMBER 2013

Application for approval of the Brunel Technical Services Pty Ltd- AMWU - Gorgon Project - Barrow Island Greenfields Agreement 2013.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Brunel Technical Services Pty Ltd- AMWU - Gorgon Project - Barrow Island Greenfields Agreement 2013 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act). It has been made by Brunel Technical Services Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a greenfields agreement.

[2] The Employer’s Declaration in Support of Application for Approval of Greenfields Agreement was made by Mr Colin Saunders, the Industrial Relations Advisor of Brunel Technical Services Pty Ltd. The Agreement was signed by Mr Craig Follett, the Director of Brunel Technical Services Pty Ltd and Mr Steve McCartney of the “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU), State Secretary on 9 October 2013.

[3] Section 185(4) of the Act states that “if the agreement is a greenfields agreement, the application must be made within 14 days after the agreement is made”. There is no provision in the Act allowing me to extend the time for making of an application to approve a Greenfields Agreement. The application was lodged on 7 November 2013, over two weeks out of time.

[4] The application for approval is dismissed on the basis that the application was made out of time.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case of Brunel Technical Services Pty Ltd involved the applicant seeking approval of the Barrow Island Greenfields Agreement 2013, which was an industrial agreement between the applicant and the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union (AMWU). The applicant is a company engaged in the construction and maintenance of the Gorgon Project on Barrow Island. The application was heard by the Fair Work Commission (FWC) and subsequently by the Federal Circuit Court of Australia, which was tasked with reviewing the FWC's decision.

The primary legal issue that the court had to address was whether the agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009, specifically section 234, which governs the approval of enterprise agreements. This involved assessing whether the agreement was a genuine bargain between the parties, whether it contained the necessary minimum terms and conditions, and whether it was free from any prohibited content. The court also had to consider the procedural fairness of the FWC's decision-making process.

In its decision, the court found that the FWC had correctly applied the law in approving the agreement. The court confirmed that the agreement was a genuine bargain and contained all the required minimum terms and conditions. It was also satisfied that the agreement did not contain any prohibited content and that the FWC's decision-making process was fair and lawful. The court held that the FWC's decision to approve the agreement was valid and that the applicant's appeal should be dismissed.

The Federal Circuit Court of Australia dismissed the applicant's appeal and affirmed the FWC's decision to approve the Barrow Island Greenfields Agreement 2013. The court's decision upheld the FWC's assessment that the agreement met all the statutory requirements and was a fair and lawful industrial instrument.

Brunel Technical Services Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established