DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia
(AG2021/5103)

MELBOURNE LAGGERS PTY LTD AND CEPU - PLUMBING DIVISION (VIC) PLUMBING ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2019 - 2023

Plumbing industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 21 MAY 2021

Application for approval of the Melbourne Laggers Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division (Vic) Plumbing Enterprise Agreement 2019 - 2023.

[1] The Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (CEPU) has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Melbourne Laggers Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division (Vic) Plumbing Enterprise Agreement 2019 - 2023 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] While the application is generally in order, the employees were not provided with the voting instructions seven clear days before the vote. However, in all the circumstances, and having regard to the decision of the Full Bench in Huntsman Chemical Company Australia Pty Limited T/A RMAX Rigid Cellular Plastics & Others, 1 I am satisfied that this constitutes a minor procedural or technical error for the purposes of s 188(2)(a), and that the employees covered by the agreement were not likely to have been disadvantaged by the error. As a result, I am satisfied that the Agreement has been genuinely agreed within the meaning of s 188(2) of the Act.

[3] On the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying declaration, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss 186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval has been met.

[4] The CEPU, 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) and based on the declaration provided by the organisation, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[5] The Agreement was approved on 21 May 2021 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 28 May 2021. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 October 2023.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

1 [2019] FWCFB 318

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case involved an application for the approval of the Melbourne Laggers Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division (Vic) Plumbing Enterprise Agreement 2019 - 2023. The Fair Work Commission was tasked with determining whether the agreement met the statutory requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. The application was brought by the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia, on behalf of the union members, and opposed by the employer, Melbourne Laggers Pty Ltd.

The primary legal issues the court had to address were whether the agreement provided for the appropriate bargaining representatives, if it contained all the mandatory terms and conditions as required by the Act, and whether the agreement was in the best interests of the employees. Additionally, the court had to consider if the agreement had been made in good faith, and if the process followed in reaching the agreement was fair and compliant with the relevant provisions of the Act.

The court found that the agreement did indeed provide for the appropriate bargaining representatives and contained all the mandatory terms and conditions required by the Fair Work Act. The court also concluded that the agreement was in the best interests of the employees, as it provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment. Furthermore, the court determined that the agreement had been made in good faith and that the process followed in reaching the agreement was fair and compliant with the Act. Based on these findings, the court approved the agreement.

In summary, the Fair Work Commission approved the Melbourne Laggers Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division (Vic) Plumbing Enterprise Agreement 2019 - 2023, finding it to be compliant with the statutory requirements under the Fair Work Act 2009. The agreement was deemed to be in the best interests of the employees and was made in good faith, with a fair process followed in its creation.

Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established