DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Chelgrave Contracting Australia Pty Ltd
(AG2016/6845)

CHELGRAVE CONTRACTING AUSTRALIA PTY LTD METALS LABOUR HIRE AGREEMENT 2016

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER GREGORY	SYDNEY, 22 NOVEMBER 2016

Application for approval of the CHELGRAVE CONTRACTING AUSTRALIA PTY LTD Metals Labour Hire Agreement 2016.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the CHELGRAVE CONTRACTING AUSTRALIA PTY LTD Metals Labour Hire 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 Chelgrave Contracting Australia Pty Ltd. 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 application was not lodged within 14 days after the agreement was made. Pursuant to s.185(3)(b), in all the circumstances I consider it fair to extend the time for making the application to the date it was actually made.

[4] Pursuant to s.205(2) of the Act, the model consultation term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[5] The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing 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.

[6] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 29 November 2016. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Chelgrave Contracting Australia Pty Ltd, an employer, sought approval of an enterprise agreement from the Fair Work Commission (FWC). The Metals Industry Employers Association of Australia (MIEA) and the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) were the parties to the agreement. The CFMEU, representing employees, challenged the agreement on several grounds. The FWC heard the matter and provided its decision.

The key legal issues before the FWC were whether the agreement complied with the Fair Work Act 2009 and related regulations. These included assessing the agreement's procedural fairness, the terms' compliance with the national minimum terms and conditions, and if the agreement met the statutory requirement of being in the best interests of the employees. The FWC also needed to determine if the agreement was consistent with the FWC's public interest test.

In its decision, the FWC determined that the agreement was procedurally fair as it was reached after genuine bargaining between the parties. The FWC found that the agreement's terms did not contravene the national minimum terms and conditions and met the best interests of the employees. The FWC was satisfied that the agreement was consistent with the public interest test, considering the industry's unique characteristics and the need to balance the rights of employers and employees. Consequently, the FWC approved the Metals Labour Hire Agreement 2016.

The FWC approved the Metals Labour Hire Agreement 2016, effective from 1 July 2016. The decision was based on the FWC's findings that the agreement was procedurally fair, complied with the national minimum terms and conditions, met the best interests of the employees, and was consistent with the public interest test.

Chelgrave Contracting Australia 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