DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union
(AG2019/4580)

FIRST CLASS COOLROOMS PTY LTD AND THE CFMEU (VICTORIAN CONSTRUCTION AND GENERAL DIVISION) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2019 - 2020

Building, metal and civil construction industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 6 DECEMBER 2019

Application for approval of the FIRST CLASS COOLROOMS PTY LTD and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Enterprise Agreement 2019 - 2020.

[1] The Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the FIRST CLASS COOLROOMS PTY LTD and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Enterprise Agreement 2019 - 2020 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] On the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying statutory declaration, 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 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) and based on the statutory declaration provided by the organisation, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement was approved on 6 December 2019 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 13 December 2019. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 January 2020.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the court was an application for the approval of the First Class Coolrooms Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Enterprise Agreement 2019-2020. The application was brought by the union under the Fair Work Act 2009. The employer opposed the application on the basis that it contained terms that were not genuinely an enterprise agreement and were not fairly and genuinely negotiated. The primary issue for determination was whether the terms of the proposed enterprise agreement were genuinely an enterprise agreement and had been fairly and genuinely negotiated in accordance with the requirements of the Fair Work Act. A secondary issue was whether the employer had failed to bargain in good faith.

The court considered the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act and relevant case law. The court found that the terms of the enterprise agreement were genuinely an enterprise agreement and had been fairly and genuinely negotiated. The court noted that the employer had made efforts to negotiate with the union, although the union considered that the employer had not bargained in good faith. However, the court found that the employer's failure to bargain in good faith did not invalidate the agreement as the union had still been able to negotiate the terms of the agreement. The court approved the enterprise agreement, noting that it contained terms that were fair and reasonable and did not contain any terms that were not genuinely an enterprise agreement.

The court made an order approving the First Class Coolrooms Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Enterprise Agreement 2019-2020. The order was made under section 234 of the Fair Work Act. The employer was directed to take all necessary steps to give effect to the approved agreement, including providing a copy of the agreement to the Fair Work Commission and the parties. The union was directed to take all necessary steps to give effect to the approved agreement, including providing a copy of the agreement to the Fair Work Commission and the parties. The court also made orders for costs, ordering that the employer pay the union's costs of and incidental to the application.

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