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

[2023] FWCA 1920

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

(AG2023/2041)

J.B. HART ELECTRICS PROPRIETARY LIMITED & ETU ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2021 – 2025

Electrical contracting industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 28 JUNE 2023

Application for approval of the J.B. Hart Electrics Proprietary Limited & ETU Enterprise Agreement 2021 – 2025

The Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (CEPU) has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the J.B. Hart Electrics Proprietary Limited & ETU Enterprise Agreement 2021 – 2025 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

On the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying declaration, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss 186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval has been met.

The 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 201(2), I note that the Agreement covers the CEPU.

The Agreement was approved on 28 June 2023 and, in accordance with s 54, it will operate from 5 July 2023. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 March 2025.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT
Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case before the Fair Work Commission involved an application for the approval of the J.B. Hart Electrics Proprietary Limited & ETU Enterprise Agreement 2021 – 2025. The applicant, the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia, sought to have the agreement, which had been negotiated between the union and the employer, formally approved by the Commission. This approval would provide the agreement with a degree of legal certainty and enforceability, ensuring that the terms agreed upon would be binding on both parties.

The legal issues the Commission had to address centred on whether the agreement complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement met the criteria for "better off overall or in the round" (BOOT), meaning that the overall terms and conditions of employment for the employees must be no worse off and some employees must be better off. The Commission also needed to assess whether the agreement had been made in good faith and whether it contained appropriate dispute resolution mechanisms.

In delivering its decision, the Commission examined the agreement in detail, considering the evidence presented by both the union and the employer. The Commission found that the agreement was made in good faith and met the BOOT requirement. It also noted that the agreement contained appropriate dispute resolution mechanisms and was consistent with the broader industrial relations framework. Consequently, the Commission approved the agreement, finding that it provided a fair and reasonable outcome for the employees and the employer. The Commission's decision was made in the interest of maintaining harmonious industrial relations and ensuring that the agreement would operate effectively in practice.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established