Complete Plumbing Contracting Pty Ltd

[2021] FWCA 6694

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Complete Plumbing Contracting Pty Ltd
(AG2021/8198)

COMPLETE PLUMBING CONTRACTING PTY LTD AND CEPU - PLUMBING DIVISION VICTORIAN BRANCH ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2021

Plumbing industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 15 NOVEMBER 2021

Application for approval of the Complete Plumbing Contracting Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division Victorian Branch Enterprise Agreement 2021

[1] Complete Plumbing Contracting Pty Ltd has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Complete Plumbing Contracting Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division Victorian Branch Enterprise Agreement 2021 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act).

[2] This is a greenfields agreement that meets the requirements of s 172(2)(b) of the Act. I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss 186 and 187 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval has been met. In accordance with s 187(5) of the Act, I am satisfied that the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (CEPU) is entitled to represent the industrial interests of a majority of employees who will be covered by the Agreement in relation to work that is to be performed under it, and that it is in the public interest to approve the Agreement.

[3] I note that pursuant to s 53(2)(b) of the Act, the Agreement was made with the CEPU and that the Agreement covers this organisation.

[4] The Agreement was approved on 15 November 2021 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 22 November 2021. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 October 2023.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Fair Work Commission, Complete Plumbing Contracting Pty Ltd applied for approval of the Complete Plumbing Contracting Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division Victorian Branch Enterprise Agreement 2021. The applicant and the union, represented by the CEPU, had negotiated the agreement, which aimed to regulate the terms and conditions of employment for employees within the company. The application was made under section 233 of the Fair Work Act 2009, which allows for the approval of enterprise agreements by the Fair Work Commission.

The primary legal issue before the Commission was whether the proposed agreement met the requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act. Specifically, the Commission needed to determine if the agreement provided for minimum rates of pay and conditions, was free from prohibited content, and was genuinely negotiated between the parties. The Commission also needed to assess whether the agreement complied with the "better off overall test," which requires that the agreement be at least as good as the applicable award or registered agreement for the employees it covers.

After reviewing the evidence and submissions from both parties, the Commission found that the agreement satisfied the requirements for approval. The agreement provided for minimum rates of pay and conditions, did not include any prohibited content, and was genuinely negotiated between the parties. Furthermore, the Commission concluded that the agreement met the better off overall test, as it provided employees with improved terms and conditions compared to the applicable award. As a result, the Commission approved the Complete Plumbing Contracting Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division Victorian Branch Enterprise Agreement 2021, which will now regulate the terms and conditions of employment for the employees covered by the agreement.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established