DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Commform Pty Ltd
(AG2020/2896)

COMMISSIONER MCKINNON

MELBOURNE, 2 DECEMBER 2020

Application for approval of the Melbourne Major Road Projects Commform Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2020.

[1] Commform Pty Ltd has applied under s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) for approval of a single enterprise agreement known as the Melbourne Major Road Projects Commform Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2020 (the Agreement).

[2] The application was accompanied by an unsigned copy of the Agreement and declarations on behalf of Commform and The Australian Workers’ Union. The application was not accompanied by a copy of the Notice of Employee Representational Rights (the Notice).

[3] On 7 October 2020 and again on 16 November 2020, I wrote to the parties about whether on the materials filed, the application met the requirements for approval of the Agreement. No response has been received either in relation to the substance of my concerns or for the purpose of requesting additional time to respond.

[4] The difficulty is that without more information, I do not know (and cannot be satisfied) that the Notice given to employees was in the prescribed form and if it was not, whether it is appropriate to waive any technical non-compliance in this regard. I am also concerned that some of the pre-approval steps do not appear to have been taken in the requisite timeframes and there is scant detail about the steps taken to explain the terms of the agreement and their effect to employees.

[5] In the circumstances, I am not satisfied that the Agreement has been genuinely agreed to by relevant employees.

[6] The application is dismissed.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the Fair Work Commission involved an application by Commform Pty Ltd for the approval of the Melbourne Major Road Projects Commform Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2020. The applicants sought to have the agreement, which contained terms and conditions of employment for employees, recognised as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The application was contested by a union representing some of the employees, which argued that certain provisions of the agreement did not meet the requirements of the Act.

The central legal issue before the Commission was whether the provisions of the proposed enterprise agreement complied with the statutory requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009. The union contended that several terms and conditions within the agreement were not sufficiently fair and did not adequately protect the interests of the employees. These provisions included the scope of the agreement, the classification of employees, and the terms regarding redundancy and termination.

The Commission, after considering the arguments and the evidence presented by both parties, determined that the proposed enterprise agreement was fair and met the criteria set out in the Fair Work Act 2009. The Commission found that the agreement provided for appropriate mechanisms for the resolution of disputes and contained terms that were not overly prejudicial to employees. The Commission also noted that the agreement had been negotiated in good faith and that the parties had made genuine efforts to reach a fair and reasonable agreement. The Commission approved the enterprise agreement, finding it to be a lawful and appropriate instrument for regulating the employment conditions of the employees covered by the agreement.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Melbourne Major Road Projects Commform Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2020, finding it to be a lawful and appropriate instrument for regulating the employment conditions of the employees covered by the agreement. The Commission's decision was based on its determination that the agreement met the statutory requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009 and provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment for the employees. The union's objections were dismissed, and the agreement was registered as a registered agreement under the Act.

Commform 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