DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union
(AG2021/4028)

MERCURY INDUSTRY PTY LTD AND THE CFMEU (VICTORIAN CONSTRUCTION AND GENERAL DIVISION) SUBCONTRACTORS GLASS AND GLAZING ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2020-2023

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER LEE	MELBOURNE, 16 MARCH 2021

Application for approval of the MERCURY INDUSTRY PTY LTD and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Glass and Glazing Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the MERCURY INDUSTRY PTY LTD and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Glass and Glazing 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 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.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 23 March 2021. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2023.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case before the Fair Work Commission involved an application for the approval of the MERCURY INDUSTRY PTY LTD and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Glass and Glazing Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023. The applicant, MERCURY INDUSTRY PTY LTD, sought to have the agreement approved under the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute centered around whether the proposed agreement met the statutory requirements for approval, particularly in relation to the provisions for employee representation and the resolution of disputes.

The primary legal issues the Commission was required to decide were whether the agreement provided for adequate mechanisms for the representation of employees and the resolution of disputes. The Commission needed to assess if the agreement contained provisions that ensured employees had a voice in the workplace and whether it provided for fair and efficient processes to resolve any disputes that might arise. These issues were crucial in determining whether the agreement could be approved as a single-employer agreement under the Fair Work Act.

In its decision, the Commission examined the proposed agreement clause by clause, focusing on the provisions related to employee representation and dispute resolution. The Commission found that the agreement included provisions for employee representation through a Subcontractors Consultative Committee, which it deemed adequate for the purposes of the Act. Furthermore, the Commission considered the dispute resolution provisions to be fair and efficient, providing for a clear process that could be followed to resolve any disputes. Given these findings, the Commission concluded that the agreement met the statutory requirements for approval and made the necessary orders to approve the agreement.

The Fair Work Commission approved the MERCURY INDUSTRY PTY LTD and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Glass and Glazing Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023. The approval was based on the determination that the agreement provided for adequate employee representation and contained fair and efficient dispute resolution provisions. The decision was made in accordance with the statutory requirements set out in the Fair Work Act 2009.

Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established