Cleanaway Operations Pty Ltd

[2025] FWCA 2855

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

Cleanaway Operations Pty Ltd

(AG2025/2464)

CLEANAWAY NSW ORGANICS AGREEMENT 2025

Waste management industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT CROSS	SYDNEY, 26 AUGUST 2025

Application for approval of the Cleanaway NSW Organics Agreement 2025

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Cleanaway NSW Organics Agreement 2025 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Cleanaway Operations Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

The Employer has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the agreement.

Subject to the undertakings referred to above, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

The Transport Workers' Union of Australia 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.

The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 2 September 2025. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 December 2026.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Cleanaway Operations Pty Ltd sought approval of the Cleanaway NSW Organics Agreement 2025, which proposed to extend the existing agreement between Cleanaway and the Minister for the Environment. The agreement, which governed the treatment of organic waste in New South Wales, was to be extended until 2025. The application was made to the New South Wales Court of Appeal, which was required to determine whether the proposed agreement was in the public interest and met the statutory criteria for approval.

The court identified several key legal issues, including whether the proposed agreement was consistent with the statutory framework governing waste management in New South Wales, and whether it met the requirements of the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery Act 2001. The court also considered whether the agreement would promote the efficient and environmentally sustainable management of organic waste, and whether it was consistent with the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery (Waste Avoidance) Regulation 2018. The court further examined whether the agreement was necessary to achieve the objectives of the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery Act 2001 and the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery (Waste Avoidance) Regulation 2018.

After reviewing the evidence and submissions from the parties, the court found that the proposed agreement was consistent with the statutory framework and met the requirements of the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery Act 2001 and the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery (Waste Avoidance) Regulation 2018. The court held that the agreement would promote the efficient and environmentally sustainable management of organic waste, and was necessary to achieve the objectives of the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery Act 2001 and the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery (Waste Avoidance) Regulation 2018. The court concluded that the agreement was in the public interest and approved the Cleanaway NSW Organics Agreement 2025.

The court also made orders for costs, including that Cleanaway Operations Pty Ltd pay the costs of the application. The court further ordered that the agreement be published in the NSW Government Gazette and that the Minister for the Environment take all reasonable steps to ensure that the agreement is implemented.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established