DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia
(AG2018/7122)

PROGRESS FIRE CO PTY LTD AND CEPU PLUMBING DIVISION FIRE SERVICES UNION COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT 2015-2019

Plumbing industry
COMMISSIONER LEE	MELBOURNE, 11 JANUARY 2019

Application for approval of the Progress Fire Co Pty Ltd and CEPU Plumbing Division Fire Services Union Collective Agreement 2015 - 2019.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Progress Fire Co Pty Ltd and CEPU Plumbing Division Fire Services 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 18 January 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 before the Fair Work Commission concerned an application for approval of the Progress Fire Co Pty Ltd and CEPU Plumbing Division Fire Services Union Collective Agreement 2015-2019. The applicant, Progress Fire Co Pty Ltd, sought to have the agreement recognised as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute arose when the respondent, the CEPU Plumbing Division Fire Services Union, contested the application on the basis that the agreement did not meet certain statutory requirements.

The central legal issues that the Commission had to resolve involved the interpretation and application of the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the Commission had to determine whether the agreement complied with the provisions concerning the registration of enterprise agreements, including the requirement that the agreement must provide for a procedure for the resolution of disputes between the parties. Additionally, the Commission needed to consider whether the agreement was made in good faith and if it contained the necessary elements required by the Act.

In addressing these issues, the Commission examined the terms of the agreement and the evidence provided by both parties. The Commission concluded that the agreement was made in good faith and contained all the necessary elements required by the Fair Work Act 2009. The Commission further found that the agreement included a dispute resolution procedure, thereby satisfying the statutory requirements for registration. Consequently, the Commission approved the application and registered the agreement as a registered agreement.

As a result of the Commission's decision, the Progress Fire Co Pty Ltd and CEPU Plumbing Division Fire Services Union Collective Agreement 2015-2019 was approved and registered under the Fair Work Act 2009. This decision ensures that the terms of the agreement are legally binding and enforceable between the parties involved.

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