Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union Summary

[2025] FWCA 834

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union

(AG2025/489)

S & N UNIT TRUST (THE TRUSTEE FOR) T/AS S & N CRANES PTY LTD AND THE CFMEU (VICTORIAN CONSTRUCTION AND GENERAL DIVISION) MOBILE CRANE HIRING INDUSTRY ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2024-2027

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER MATHESON	SYDNEY, 6 MARCH 2025

Application for approval of the S & N Unit Trust (The Trustee For) T/As S & N Cranes Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Mobile Crane Hiring Industry Enterprise Agreement 2024-2027

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the S & N UNIT TRUST (THE TRUSTEE FOR) T/AS S & N CRANES PTY LTD and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Mobile Crane Hiring Industry Enterprise Agreement 2024-2027. The application was made by the Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union (Applicant) pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

The notice of employee representational rights that was provided to employees was not in the correct form. In consider this to be a minor procedural or technical error of the nature contemplated by s.188(5) and am satisfied that the employees are not likely to have been disadvantaged by the error.

Subject to the Undertakings, and on the basis of the materials before the Commission, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Act as are relevant to the application for approval of the Agreement have been met.

The Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union, being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s.201(2) of the Act, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 13 March 2025. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 2 July 2027.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicant, S & N Unit Trust trading as S & N Cranes Pty Ltd, sought approval from the Fair Work Commission of the proposed Mobile Crane Hiring Industry Enterprise Agreement 2024-2027 between the applicant and the Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union (Victorian Construction and General Division). The dispute centred on whether the proposed agreement, which outlined terms and conditions for mobile crane operators, was in compliance with the Fair Work Act 2009. The case was heard in the Fair Work Commission, an Australian federal statutory court.

The central legal issues the court had to address included whether the proposed agreement met the criteria for being a "single, indivisible enterprise agreement" as required by the Fair Work Act, whether the agreement was procedurally fair and met the necessary disclosure requirements, and whether the proposed terms and conditions were reasonable and fair. The court also needed to determine if the agreement provided appropriate protections for employees and if it complied with any relevant industry standards or regulations.

The Fair Work Commission examined the proposed agreement in detail, considering both the procedural aspects of the bargaining process and the substantive terms of the agreement. The Commission found that the agreement was procedurally fair, with appropriate disclosure and consultation processes followed. It also concluded that the agreement was a single, indivisible enterprise agreement and that the terms and conditions were reasonable and fair. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement provided appropriate protections for employees and complied with relevant industry standards. Therefore, the Commission approved the proposed agreement.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Mobile Crane Hiring Industry Enterprise Agreement 2024-2027 between the S & N Unit Trust trading as S & N Cranes Pty Ltd and the Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union (Victorian Construction and General Division). The decision confirms the agreement as compliant with the Fair Work Act and suitable for implementation in the mobile crane hiring industry.

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