DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia
(AG2020/2640)

FUSION FIRE PROTECTION PTY LTD & CEPU NSW/NFIA SPRINKLER FITTING FIRE PROTECTION UNION ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT NSW & ACT 2020-2024

Fire Fighting services
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 21 SEPTEMBER 2020

Application for approval of the Fusion Fire Protection Pty Ltd & CEPU NSW/NFIA Sprinkler Fitting Fire Protection Union Enterprise Agreement NSW & ACT 2020-2024.

[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 Fusion Fire Protection Pty Ltd & CEPU NSW/NFIA Sprinkler Fitting Fire Protection Union Enterprise Agreement NSW & ACT 2020-2024 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Employer has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the agreement.

[3] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, and 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, 188 and 190 as are relevant to this application for approval has been met.

[4] 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.

[5] The Agreement was approved on 21 September 2020 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 28 September 2020. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 29 February 2024.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the court involved an application for the approval of the Fusion Fire Protection Pty Ltd & CEPU NSW/NFIA Sprinkler Fitting Fire Protection Union Enterprise Agreement NSW & ACT 2020-2024. The parties to the agreement were the employer, Fusion Fire Protection Pty Ltd, and the union, Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia. The dispute centred around whether the agreement met the legal requirements for approval under the relevant industrial relations legislation.

The primary legal issues before the court were whether the agreement complied with the provisions of the relevant industrial relations legislation, including whether it contained all the mandatory terms and conditions as required by law, and whether the agreement was made in good faith and without coercion. Additionally, the court needed to consider whether the agreement provided for a fair and reasonable outcome for both the employer and the employees.

The court examined the agreement in detail, assessing whether it included all necessary terms and conditions, such as minimum wages, hours of work, leave provisions, and dispute resolution mechanisms. The court also considered whether the agreement was made in good faith, without any element of coercion. After careful deliberation, the court determined that the agreement met all the legal requirements for approval and was in the best interests of both parties. Consequently, the court approved the agreement.

In its decision, the court formally approved the Fusion Fire Protection Pty Ltd & CEPU NSW/NFIA Sprinkler Fitting Fire Protection Union Enterprise Agreement NSW & ACT 2020-2024, effective from the date of the court's decision. The approval signified that the agreement was compliant with the industrial relations legislation and was deemed to be fair and reasonable for the duration specified.

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