DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia
(AG2016/7731)

FAULKNER ROOFING PTY LTD AND CEPU - PLUMBING DIVISION VICTORIAN BRANCH ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2015 – 2019

Plumbing industry
COMMISSIONER GREGORY	MELBOURNE, 12 JANUARY 2017

Application for approval of the Faulkner Roofing Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division Victorian Branch Enterprise Agreement 2015 - 2019.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Faulkner Roofing Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division Victorian Branch Enterprise 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 the 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 19 January 2017. 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 involved an application by the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia, along with Faulkner Roofing Pty Ltd, for the approval of their Enterprise Agreement for the period 2015 to 2019. The application was brought under the provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009, with the objective of having the agreement recognised as a registered enterprise agreement. The dispute centred on whether the proposed agreement complied with the legal standards for registration and whether it appropriately balanced the interests of both the employer and employees.

The legal issues that the Commission was required to decide included whether the agreement met the procedural requirements for registration, whether the terms of the agreement were fair and reasonable, and whether the agreement included all the prescribed minimum terms as stipulated under the Fair Work Act. Specifically, the Commission needed to examine if the agreement had been genuinely negotiated between the parties, if the agreement was free from any improper influences, and if it provided for the appropriate minimum entitlements and conditions for employees.

In delivering its decision, the Commission noted that the application was made in accordance with the formal procedures required by the Fair Work Act. The Commission examined the evidence presented regarding the negotiation process and found that it was conducted in good faith and without any improper influences. Furthermore, the Commission determined that the terms of the agreement were fair and reasonable, taking into account the interests of both the employer and the employees. The Commission concluded that all prescribed minimum terms were included in the agreement, thus complying with the statutory requirements. Consequently, the Commission approved the application and registered the Enterprise Agreement as a lawful and binding document.

The final orders of the Commission were that the Faulkner Roofing Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division Victorian Branch Enterprise Agreement 2015 - 2019 be approved and registered as a valid enterprise agreement under the Fair Work Act. This decision ensures that the terms and conditions of employment for the employees covered by the agreement are legally recognised and enforceable.

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