DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia
(AG2021/4471)

HAMILTON FIRE PROTECTION PTY LTD AND CEPU - PLUMBING DIVISION (VIC) FIRE PROTECTION AGREEMENT VICTORIA 2020-2023

Plumbing industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 8 APRIL 2021

Application for approval of the Hamilton Fire Protection Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division (Vic) Fire Protection Agreement Victoria 2020-2023.

[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 Hamilton Fire Protection Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division (Vic) Fire Protection Agreement Victoria 2020-2023 (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 application was not lodged within 14 days after the agreement was made. Pursuant to s 185(3)(b), I consider it fair in all the circumstances to extend the time for making the application to the date it was actually made.

[5] 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.

[6] The Agreement was approved on 8 April 2021 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 15 April 2021. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 October 2023.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

1 [2019] FWCFB 318

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the matter of the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia, the court heard an application for the approval of the Hamilton Fire Protection Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division (Vic) Fire Protection Agreement Victoria 2020-2023. The union sought to have the agreement approved as a certified agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The applicant argued that the agreement contained terms and conditions that were fair and reasonable and met the criteria for approval under the Act.

The legal issues before the court were whether the agreement was a genuine agreement, whether it had been genuinely negotiated, and whether it met the criteria for approval as set out in the Fair Work Act 2009. The court considered the evidence and submissions from both parties and determined that the agreement was a genuine agreement that had been genuinely negotiated. The court also found that the agreement met the criteria for approval as it contained terms and conditions that were fair and reasonable.

After careful consideration of the evidence and submissions, the court approved the agreement as a certified agreement. The union's application for approval was successful, and the agreement will now be registered as a certified agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The agreement will apply to employees of Hamilton Fire Protection Pty Ltd who are members of the union and will remain in effect until the end of the agreement's term in 2023. The court's decision provides clarity and certainty for both the union and the employer regarding the terms and conditions of employment for the affected employees.

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