DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia
(AG2016/5623)

AGL GROUP PTY LTD AND CEPU – PLUMBING DIVISION VICTORIAN BRANCH ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2015 – 2019

Plumbing industry
COMMISSIONER GREGORY	MELBOURNE, 29 SEPTEMBER 2016

Application for approval of the AGL Group 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 AGL Group 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 6 October 2016. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 October 2019.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the Fair Work Commission was an application for the approval of the AGL Group Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division Victorian Branch Enterprise Agreement 2015 - 2019. The application was brought under section 234 of the Fair Work Act 2009 by the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia, as the registered bargaining representative of the employees. The dispute centred around whether the proposed enterprise agreement met the legal requirements for approval under the Act, specifically whether it provided for the fair and equitable treatment of employees and included the necessary provisions for dispute resolution.

The key legal issues addressed by the Commission were whether the agreement provided adequate protections for employees' wages and conditions, including minimum rates of pay, penalty rates, and allowances. Additionally, the Commission considered whether the agreement contained appropriate mechanisms for resolving disputes between the employer and employees, and whether it complied with the good faith bargaining requirements of the Act. The Commission also examined whether the agreement included any provisions that could be considered unfair or detrimental to employees.

In its decision, the Commission found that the agreement met the requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act. The agreement provided for fair and equitable treatment of employees, including appropriate minimum rates of pay and penalty rates. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement contained adequate provisions for resolving disputes and that the bargaining process had been conducted in good faith. The Commission also noted that the agreement did not contain any provisions that could be considered unfair or detrimental to employees. Consequently, the Fair Work Commission approved the enterprise agreement, and it came into effect on the date of the decision.

The final orders of the Commission were that the AGL Group Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division Victorian Branch Enterprise Agreement 2015 - 2019 be approved under section 234 of the Fair Work Act 2009, effective from the date of the decision. This approval meant that the agreement could be applied to the employees covered by it, providing them with the terms and conditions of employment as set out in the agreement.

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