DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union
(AG2021/227)

GTC ENGINEERING PTY LTD AND THE CFMEU (VICTORIAN CONSTRUCTION AND GENERAL DIVISION) SUBCONTRACTORS TOWER CRANE RIGGERS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2020-2023

Building, metal and civil construction industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT MASSON	MELBOURNE, 17 FEBRUARY 2021

Application for approval of the GTC ENGINEERING PTY LTD and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Tower Crane Riggers Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the GTC ENGINEERING PTY LTD and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Tower Crane Riggers 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] 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 the 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.

[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 24 February 2021. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2023.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

1 [2019] FWCFB 318.

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case involved the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) and GTC Engineering Pty Ltd, concerning the application for approval of the Subcontractors Tower Crane Riggers Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023. The dispute was heard in the Fair Work Commission (FWC). The CFMEU sought approval for the enterprise agreement on behalf of its members who are employed by GTC Engineering, a company engaged in the construction industry. The enterprise agreement proposed various terms and conditions of employment, including pay rates, working hours, and other employment-related matters.

The legal issues before the FWC centred on whether the proposed enterprise agreement met the necessary requirements under the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the court had to determine if the agreement complied with the provisions of the Act, including the 'better off overall test', which required that the agreement should provide employees with a minimum of the national minimum wages and conditions, and be at least as good as the applicable award or registered agreement. The FWC also needed to consider if the agreement was made in good faith and if it provided for a genuine enterprise bargaining process.

The FWC, after carefully examining the proposed agreement, found that it met the requirements under the Fair Work Act. The commission noted that the agreement provided for minimum wages and conditions that were at least as good as the applicable award, and it was made in good faith with a genuine enterprise bargaining process. Consequently, the FWC approved the Subcontractors Tower Crane Riggers Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023, effective from the date of the decision. The approval granted by the FWC ensures that the terms and conditions outlined in the agreement would be legally binding on both GTC Engineering and the CFMEU members involved in the enterprise.

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