DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia
(AG2016/3388)

THE PIPE KING (AUST) PTY LTD T/A UNDERGROUND PLUMBING AND CEPU PLUMBING DIVISION PLUMBING UNION COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT 2015 - 2019

Plumbing industry
COMMISSIONER LEE	MELBOURNE, 10 JUNE 2016

Application for approval of the The Pipe King (Aust) Pty Ltd t/a Underground Plumbing and CEPU Plumbing Division Plumbing Union Collective Agreement 2015 - 2019.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the The Pipe King (Aust) Pty Ltd t/a Underground Plumbing and CEPU Plumbing Division Plumbing 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 the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Applicant has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement.

[3] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[4] 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.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 17 June 2016. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 October 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case before the Fair Work Commission was an application for the approval of a collective agreement between The Pipe King (Aust) Pty Ltd, trading as Underground Plumbing, and the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia, CEPU Plumbing Division. The applicants sought to have the terms of their collective agreement recognised as a registered instrument under the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute centred on whether the agreement met the legal requirements for registration, including whether it provided for genuine enterprise bargaining, contained permissible terms, and complied with the good faith obligations under the Act.

The legal issues the court had to address were whether the agreement genuinely reflected the outcome of enterprise bargaining between the parties, whether the terms of the agreement were within the scope of permissible content, and whether the agreement complied with the good faith provisions of the Fair Work Act. Specifically, the court had to determine if the bargaining process was conducted in good faith, if the agreement's terms were reasonably necessary for the management of the workplace, and if the agreement contained provisions that were not permissible under the Act.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement had been genuinely bargained and that the terms were within the permissible scope. The court noted that the agreement reflected the outcome of negotiations between the parties, that the process was conducted in good faith, and that the terms were reasonably necessary for the management of the workplace. The Commission also found that the agreement did not contain any impermissible terms and that it complied with the good faith obligations. As such, the Commission approved the agreement as a registered instrument.

The Fair Work Commission approved the collective agreement as a registered instrument, recognising it as a valid and binding contract between the parties. The decision confirms the importance of genuine enterprise bargaining and the need for agreements to meet the legal requirements for registration under the Fair Work Act. This outcome provides clarity for employers and unions when negotiating and registering collective agreements, ensuring that the terms are fair and within the permissible scope of the 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