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

[2024] FWCA 854

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185 - Application for approval of a greenfields agreement

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

(AG2024/381)

CENTREPOINT CONTRACTING PTY LTD GOLD COAST LIGHT RAIL STAGE 3 PROJECT AGREEMENT

Plumbing industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT ROBERTS	SYDNEY, 7 MARCH 2024

Application for approval of the Centrepoint Contracting Pty Ltd Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 3 Project Agreement

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Centrepoint Contracting Pty Ltd Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 3 Project Agreement (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 (CEPU) (the Applicant). The employer covered by the Agreement is Centrepoint Contracting Pty Ltd (the Employer). The Agreement is a greenfields enterprise agreement.

The Employer has provided written undertakings (Annexure A). In accordance with s.190(4) of the Act the views of the bargaining representatives for the agreement were sought in relation to the undertakings. 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.

Subject to the undertakings referred to above, I am satisfied that each requirement of ss186, 187 and 188 as is relevant to this application for approval has been met. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

I note that Clause 3.1 of the Agreement provides that this Agreement will be read and interpreted in conjunction with the National Employment Standards (NES). Where there is inconsistency between this agreement and the NES, and the NES provides greater benefit, the NES provision will apply to the extent of the inconsistency.

The CEPU lodged a Form F21 statutory declaration as required by Rule 24(5) of the Fair Work Commission Rules 2013.

The Agreement is approved and will operate in accordance with s.54 of the Act. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 7 March 2028.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

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 for approval of the Centrepoint Contracting Pty Ltd Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 3 Project Agreement. The dispute centred on whether the agreement met the statutory requirements under the Fair Work Act 2009, specifically in relation to the terms and conditions for employees working on the Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 3 Project. The Commission was tasked with determining whether the proposed agreement was a simple, efficient, and effective means of regulating the employment relationship between the employer and the employees.

The central legal issues that the Commission needed to resolve were whether the agreement provided adequate protections for employees, including minimum wage rates, leave entitlements, and other working conditions. Additionally, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement complied with the statutory requirements under the Fair Work Act, including the necessity for the agreement to be a genuine enterprise agreement and to provide for a fair and efficient method of regulating employment relationships.

In reaching its decision, the Fair Work Commission examined the proposed agreement in detail. It found that the agreement contained provisions that adequately protected employees' rights and interests, including minimum wage rates, leave entitlements, and other working conditions. The Commission also concluded that the agreement was a genuine enterprise agreement, as it was made by the employer and the union, and that it provided for a fair and efficient method of regulating employment relationships. The Commission approved the agreement, noting that it met the statutory requirements under the Fair Work Act.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Centrepoint Contracting Pty Ltd Gold Coast Light Rail Stage 3 Project Agreement, finding that it provided adequate protections for employees and complied with the statutory requirements under the Fair Work Act. The agreement was approved as a genuine enterprise agreement and an effective means of regulating the employment relationship between the employer and the employees.

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

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established