DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia
(AG2019/1446)

D & E AIR CONDITIONING PTY LIMITED AND CEPU PLUMBING DIVISION MECHANICAL UNION COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT 2015-2019

Plumbing industry
COMMISSIONER LEE	MELBOURNE, 24 MAY 2019

Application for approval of the D & E Air Conditioning Pty Limited and CEPU Plumbing Division Mechanical Union Collective Agreement 2015-2019.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the D & E Air Conditioning Pty Limited and CEPU Plumbing Division Mechanical Union Collective Agreement 2015-2019 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have 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) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 31 May 2019. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 October 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter involved the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (the Applicant) and D & E Air Conditioning Pty Limited (the Employer). The Applicant sought approval of a collective agreement between the Employer and the CEPU Plumbing Division Mechanical Union, covering the period from 2015 to 2019. The case was heard by the Fair Work Commission, a federal statutory tribunal with jurisdiction over workplace relations matters.

The primary legal issue before the Commission was whether the collective agreement met the statutory requirements under the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the Applicant needed to demonstrate that the agreement was made in good faith and was necessary to prevent, mitigate, or resolve an industrial dispute. Additionally, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement complied with the provisions of the Fair Work Act, including those relating to minimum wages and conditions, and whether it was consistent with the overarching principles of the Act.

The Commission found that the Applicant had discharged the onus of proving that the agreement was made in good faith and was necessary to resolve an industrial dispute. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement had been negotiated in a manner consistent with the principles of good faith bargaining and that it addressed the issues that were the subject of the dispute. Furthermore, the Commission found that the agreement complied with the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act, including those relating to minimum wages and conditions. Consequently, the Commission approved the collective agreement, finding that it met the statutory requirements under the Fair Work Act.

The Fair Work Commission approved the collective agreement between the Applicant and the Employer, effective from 2015 to 2019. This decision underscores the importance of good faith bargaining in the resolution of workplace disputes and the need for collective agreements to comply with the statutory requirements of the Fair Work Act.

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