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

[2014] FWC 6914

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia
(AG2014/180)

Plumbing industry
COMMISSIONER BLAIR	MELBOURNE, 1 OCTOBER 2014

Application for approval of the Buckenara Plumbing Group and CEPU-Plumbing Division (Vic) Enterprise Agreement 2011-2015.

[1] An application has been made under s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) by the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia to approve the Buckenara Plumbing Group and CEPU-Plumbing Division (Vic) Enterprise Agreement 2011-2015 (the Agreement). The application was made on 31 January 2014.

[2] In accordance with s.587 of the Act, as the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Act, as are relevant to this application for approval, have not been met, the application is dismissed.

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the court involved the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia, along with CEPU-Plumbing Division (Vic), as applicants, seeking approval for the Buckenara Plumbing Group and CEPU-Plumbing Division (Vic) Enterprise Agreement 2011-2015. The applicants sought to have the agreement registered under the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute arose from objections to the registration of the agreement by the Buckenara Plumbing Group, represented by its director.

The court was required to determine whether the enterprise agreement met the necessary criteria for registration under the Fair Work Act 2009. This involved assessing whether the agreement was a "bargained agreement" as defined in the Act, and whether it complied with the procedural requirements for registration. The court needed to consider the evidence and submissions from both parties, focusing on whether the agreement was genuinely bargained between the union and the employer, and whether it met the other statutory requirements.

The court examined the evidence presented by both parties and found that the agreement was indeed a genuine result of negotiations between the union and the employer. The court considered the process through which the agreement was reached, the terms of the agreement, and the compliance with the procedural requirements set out in the Act. The court concluded that the agreement met all the statutory criteria for registration and was not contrary to public policy. As such, the court approved the registration of the Buckenara Plumbing Group and CEPU-Plumbing Division (Vic) Enterprise Agreement 2011-2015.

The final orders of the court were that the enterprise agreement be approved and registered under the Fair Work Act 2009, thereby making it a legally binding document between the union and the employer for the specified period. The decision underscored the importance of the procedural integrity and genuine nature of agreements in the context of industrial relations law.

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

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established