Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union

[2025] FWCA 1371

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union

(AG2025/1142)

BETTER BUILT MASONARY PTY LTD AND THE CFMEU (VICTORIAN CONSTRUCTION AND GENERAL DIVISION) SUBCONTRACTORS BRICKLAYING ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2024 - 2027

Building, metal and civil construction industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 24 APRIL 2025

Application for approval of the Better Built Masonary Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Bricklaying Enterprise Agreement 2024 - 2027

The Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union (CFMEU) has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Better Built Masonary Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Bricklaying Enterprise Agreement 2024 - 2027 (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 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 April 2025.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT
Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union (CFMEU) applied for approval of the Better Built Masonry Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Bricklaying Enterprise Agreement 2024-2027. The dispute involved the terms and conditions of employment for bricklayers under the proposed agreement, which was to cover a period of three years. The application was made before the Fair Work Commission, which has the jurisdiction to assess and approve such agreements under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The primary legal issues before the Commission were whether the proposed agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act, including whether it provided for a fair and efficient workplace, and whether it complied with the ‘better off overall test’. This test requires that the agreement's terms must be at least as good as the applicable award or other relevant industrial instrument in terms of pay and conditions. The Commission also needed to consider whether the agreement contained terms that were procedurally and substantively fair and reasonable.

In reaching its decision, the Commission examined the terms of the proposed agreement in detail, considering submissions from both the CFMEU and Better Built Masonry. The Commission concluded that the agreement provided for a fair and efficient workplace and met the better off overall test. It found that the proposed conditions of employment were procedurally and substantively fair, taking into account the specific needs and circumstances of the bricklaying industry. The Commission approved the agreement, noting the balance it struck between the interests of employers and employees.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Better Built Masonry Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Bricklaying Enterprise Agreement 2024-2027. This decision was based on the findings that the agreement was fair and efficient, met the better off overall test, and contained terms that were procedurally and substantively fair and reasonable. The approval ensures that the agreed terms and conditions of employment will apply to the bricklayers covered by the agreement for the specified period.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established