DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia
(AG2020/2747)

MEGA INDUSTRIES PTY LTD AND ETU MELBOURNE METRO TUNNEL ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2020-2023

Electrical contracting industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 2 OCTOBER 2020

Application for approval of the Mega Industries Pty Ltd and ETU Melbourne Metro Tunnel Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023.

[1] The Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Mega Industries Pty Ltd and ETU Melbourne Metro Tunnel Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] On the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying statutory 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.

[3] The Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services 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) and based on the statutory declaration provided by the organisation, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement was approved on 2 October 2020 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 9 October 2020. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 October 2022.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The parties involved in this application are the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (the Union) and Mega Industries Pty Ltd (the Employer). The Union sought approval for the Mega Industries Pty Ltd and ETU Melbourne Metro Tunnel Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023. The dispute arose from the Union's application to the Fair Work Commission, which was contested by the Employer on the basis that the agreement did not meet the criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The legal issues before the Court were whether the agreement was a genuine enterprise agreement, whether it complied with the procedural requirements of the Fair Work Act, and whether it contained all the mandatory terms prescribed by the Act. The Union argued that the agreement was genuine, procedurally valid, and contained all the mandatory terms, while the Employer contended that the agreement did not meet the statutory criteria for approval.

The Court found that the agreement was a genuine enterprise agreement and that it complied with the procedural requirements of the Fair Work Act. However, the Court found that the agreement did not contain all the mandatory terms prescribed by the Act, specifically the terms relating to redundancy payments. As a result, the Court refused to approve the agreement.

The Court ordered that the Union and the Employer were to negotiate in good faith to reach an agreement that included all the mandatory terms. The Court also ordered that the Union pay the Employer's costs of the application.

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

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Legal Principle Established