Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia

[2014] FWCA 8192

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia
(AG2014/8149)

MULTI COMMUNICATION SERVICES PTY LTD & CEPU ELECTRICAL DIVISION QUEENSLAND ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2012-2015

Electrical contracting industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT LAWRENCE	SYDNEY, 18 NOVEMBER 2014

Application for approval of the Multi Communication Services Pty Ltd & CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2012-2015.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Multi Communication Services Pty Ltd & CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2012-2015 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] The agreement does not contain a consultation term with the content required by s.205(1) and (1A). Accordingly, in accordance with s.205(2), the model consultation term contained in Schedule 2.3 of the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the agreement.

[4] The Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (CEPU) being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. As required by s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[5] The Agreement is approved. In accordance with s.54(1) it will operate from 25 November 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement 31 December 2015.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the Fair Work Commission involved an application for approval of the Multi Communication Services Pty Ltd & CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2012-2015. The applicant, CEPU Electrical Division, sought approval for the enterprise agreement between the employer and its employees. The dispute centred on whether the proposed agreement met the statutory requirements under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The central legal issue before the Commission was whether the agreement complied with the provisions of the Fair Work Act, particularly concerning the requirement for fair and reasonable terms. The applicant argued that the agreement met all necessary criteria, including the procedural fairness and substantive fairness of its terms. The Commission needed to determine if the agreement was genuinely negotiated and provided for fair and reasonable terms for the employees.

The Commission carefully examined the evidence and submissions presented by both parties. It considered the process by which the agreement was negotiated and the terms it contained. The Commission found that the agreement was the product of genuine negotiations and that its terms were fair and reasonable. The Commission noted that the agreement provided for adequate protections for employees, including provisions for wages, conditions, and dispute resolution mechanisms. Consequently, the Commission approved the application and certified the enterprise agreement as meeting the necessary statutory requirements.

The Fair Work Commission certified the Multi Communication Services Pty Ltd & CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2012-2015 as meeting the requirements of the Fair Work Act. The agreement was approved and became legally binding on the parties from the specified commencement date.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established