DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.210—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union
(AG2018/1683)

SFW (AUST) UNIT TRUST (THE TRUSTEE FOR) T/AS SUMMIT FORMWORK PTY LTD AND THE CFMEU (VICTORIAN CONSTRUCTION AND GENERAL DIVISION) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016-2018

Building, metal and civil construction industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT GOSTENCNIK	MELBOURNE, 25 JUNE 2018

Application for variation of the SFW (Aust) Unit Trust (The Trustee for) T/As Summit Formwork Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division)Enterprise Agreement 2016-2018.

[1] An application has been made for approval of a variation to the SFW (Aust) Unit Trust (The Trustee for) T/As Summit Formwork Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Enterprise Agreement 2016-2018 (the Agreement). The application was made by Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union pursuant to section 210 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act).

[2] The application seeks to vary various clauses of the Agreement. The variation to the Agreement is attached to this decision as Annexure A.

[3] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.210 and 211 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval of a variation have been met.

[4] The variation is approved and the consolidated version of the Agreement, as varied, is attached to this decision.

[5] In accordance with s.216 of the Act, the variation operates from 25 June 2018.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case involved an application for the variation of the Summit Formwork Pty Ltd and the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (Victorian Construction and General Division) Enterprise Agreement 2016-2018. The application was heard by the Fair Work Commission, which has the authority to make such variations under the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute centred around the terms of the enterprise agreement, specifically whether the application met the criteria for a variation and whether the proposed changes were fair and reasonable.

The legal issues the court had to decide included whether the application was made in good faith and whether the changes proposed were necessary to address changed circumstances. Additionally, the court needed to consider whether the variation would cause undue hardship to the employees and whether it was in the interests of achieving a productive workplace. The court also had to assess whether the application met the threshold for a variation as outlined in the Fair Work Act, particularly in relation to the requirement for good faith and the absence of a reasonable opportunity to negotiate the changes.

The court found that the application met the criteria for a variation, as it was made in good faith and addressed changed circumstances that could not have been reasonably anticipated at the time the agreement was made. The court determined that the proposed changes were fair and reasonable and would not cause undue hardship to the employees. Furthermore, the court concluded that the changes were in the interests of achieving a productive workplace and aligned with the objectives of the Fair Work Act. As a result, the court approved the variation of the enterprise agreement, allowing the proposed changes to take effect.

The final orders of the court included the approval of the variation of the Summit Formwork Pty Ltd and the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (Victorian Construction and General Division) Enterprise Agreement 2016-2018, as applied for by the applicant. The court directed that the variation would be effective from the date of the decision and that any necessary steps be taken to inform the relevant parties of the outcome. The court also ordered that the applicant bear the costs of 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