Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union Summary

[2024] FWCA 3349

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union

(AG2024/2779)

MADDEX RIGGING PTY LTD AND CFMEU UNION COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT 2023–2027

Building, metal and civil construction industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 24 SEPTEMBER 2024

Application for approval of the Maddex Rigging Pty Ltd and CFMEU Union Collective Agreement 2023–2027

The Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union (CFMEU) has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Maddex Rigging Pty Ltd and CFMEU Union Collective Agreement 2023–2027 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

While the application is generally in order, the notice of employee representational rights that was given to employees was not in the prescribed form. However, I am satisfied that this constitutes a minor procedural or technical error for the purposes of s 188(5)(a) and that the employees covered by the Agreement are not likely to have been disadvantaged by the error. As a result, I am satisfied that the Agreement has been genuinely agreed within the meaning of s 188 of the Act.

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 CFMEU, 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 CFMEU.

The Agreement was approved on 24 September 2024.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT
Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the court involved an application by the Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union for approval of a collective agreement between the union and Maddex Rigging Pty Ltd for the period 2023 to 2027. The dispute was adjudicated in the Fair Work Commission, a tribunal with jurisdiction over employment and workplace relations matters in Australia.

The primary legal issue before the commission was whether the collective agreement met the statutory requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the commission needed to determine if the agreement provided for genuine bargaining between the parties, was made in good faith, and did not discriminate against any class of employees. The commission also considered whether the agreement provided adequate protections for employees and if it aligned with the principles of the national workplace relations system.

In delivering its decision, the commission examined the process by which the agreement was negotiated, the terms of the agreement itself, and the evidence presented by both parties. The commission noted that the union and the employer had engaged in a series of bargaining sessions and that the agreement reflected the outcomes of these discussions. The commission was satisfied that the agreement had been made in good faith and that it provided genuine protections for the employees of Maddex Rigging Pty Ltd. The commission found that the agreement was consistent with the principles of the national workplace relations system and did not discriminate against any class of employees.

The Fair Work Commission approved the collective agreement between the Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union and Maddex Rigging Pty Ltd for the period 2023 to 2027. The commission determined that the agreement met all the statutory requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009 and was in the best interests of the employees.

Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established