DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union
(AG2021/6462)

KELLER PTY LTD AND THE CFMEU (VICTORIAN CONSTRUCTION AND GENERAL DIVISION) SUBCONTRACTORS PILING ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2020-2023

Building, metal and civil construction industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT MASSON	MELBOURNE, 10 AUGUST 2021

Application for approval of the KELLER PTY LTD and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Piling Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the KELLER PTY LTD and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Piling Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] Pursuant to s.202(4) of the Act, the model flexibility term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[4] The title of the Agreement in the Notice of Employee Representational Rights was different to the title clause in the proposed Agreement. However, I am satisfied that in all of the circumstances and having regard to Huntsman Chemical Company Australia Pty Limited T/A RMAX Rigid Cellular Plastics & Others 1, this constitutes a minor procedural or technical error for the purpose of s.188(2)(a). Further, I am satisfied that the employees covered by the Agreement were not likely to be disadvantaged by the error.

[5] The Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy 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) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[6] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 17 August 2021. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2023.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

1 [2019] FWCFB 318.

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Fair Work Commission, the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) and Keller Pty Ltd applied for the approval of the Subcontractors Piling Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023. The agreement in question was a result of negotiations between the union and the company. The union and the company sought the Commission's approval of the agreement, which included provisions relating to wages, hours of work, and other conditions of employment for employees covered by the agreement.

The Commission had to decide whether the agreement met the criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. The Act requires that an enterprise agreement must provide for the terms and conditions of employment of employees, provide for a process for resolving disputes, and not have the purpose, or have the effect, of diminishing the ability of employees to take industrial action. The Commission also had to consider whether the agreement was in the best interests of the employees covered by it.

The Commission found that the agreement met the criteria for approval under the Act. The agreement provided for the terms and conditions of employment of employees, including wages and hours of work, and provided for a process for resolving disputes. The Commission also found that the agreement did not have the purpose, or have the effect, of diminishing the ability of employees to take industrial action. Finally, the Commission found that the agreement was in the best interests of the employees covered by it.

The Commission approved the Subcontractors Piling Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023. The agreement will now apply to the employees covered by it, and will remain in force until it is terminated or replaced by a new agreement.

Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union

DECISION

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Legal Principle Established