DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia
(AG2016/6113)

QUANTUM ACCESS AND CEPU - PLUMBING DIVISION VICTORIAN BRANCH ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2015-2019

Plumbing industry
COMMISSIONER GREGORY	MELBOURNE, 6 OCTOBER 2016

Application for approval of the Quantum Access 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 Quantum Access 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 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 13 October 2016. 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 case involved the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia, along with Quantum Access, and the CEPU – Plumbing Division Victorian Branch. The matter pertained to the application for approval of the Enterprise Agreement between Quantum Access and the CEPU – Plumbing Division Victorian Branch for the period 2015-2019. The application was heard by the Fair Work Commission.

The central legal issues before the Commission were whether the Enterprise Agreement complied with the Fair Work Act 2009 and whether the application for approval should be granted. Specifically, the Commission needed to determine if the agreement was genuinely negotiated, met the ‘better off overall test’, and adhered to the relevant provisions of the Act.

The Commission examined the processes and documentation provided to ascertain the genuineness of the negotiation process. It also assessed whether the agreement provided employees with a better overall outcome than the applicable industrial instrument. After careful consideration of the evidence and submissions, the Commission found that the Enterprise Agreement was genuinely negotiated and met the statutory requirements, including the better off overall test. Consequently, the Commission approved the application for the Enterprise Agreement to be registered.

The Fair Work Commission approved the application for the Enterprise Agreement to be registered, effective from the date of the decision. This decision validated the agreement as a legally binding instrument between Quantum Access and the CEPU – Plumbing Division Victorian Branch, setting the terms and conditions of employment for the specified period.

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