DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union
(AG2018/758)

GANELLEN PTY LTD / CFMEU COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT 2017-2018

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER JOHNS	MELBOURNE, 29 MARCH 2018

Application for approval of the Ganellen Pty Ltd / CFMEU Collective Agreement 2017-2018.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Ganellen Pty Ltd / CFMEU Collective Agreement 2017-2018 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by 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 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.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 5 April 2017. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 December 2018.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter involved an application for the approval of a collective agreement between Ganellen Pty Ltd and the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU). The application was made to the Fair Work Commission (FWC), which was asked to determine whether the proposed agreement complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth). The union and the employer had entered into a collective agreement covering the period 2017-2018, and the FWC needed to assess whether this agreement met the statutory criteria for approval.

The central legal issues that the FWC had to decide were whether the proposed agreement complied with the procedural requirements of the Fair Work Act, and whether it contained terms that were consistent with the Act's purpose of facilitating a productive workplace relationship. Specifically, the FWC needed to consider whether the agreement was made in good faith, whether it was free from any improper influence or interference, and whether it complied with the 'better off overall test' (BOOT), which requires that the terms of the agreement should be at least as favourable to employees as the applicable awards or other industrial instruments.

In delivering its decision, the FWC noted that the application for approval of the collective agreement was made in accordance with the statutory requirements. The FWC found that the agreement had been made in good faith, and that there was no evidence of any improper influence or interference. Furthermore, the FWC was satisfied that the agreement complied with the BOOT, as the terms were at least as favourable to employees as the applicable awards or other industrial instruments. As a result, the FWC approved the proposed collective agreement between Ganellen Pty Ltd and the CFMEU for the period 2017-2018.

The FWC's approval of the collective agreement means that it will now have the force of a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act. The terms of the agreement will bind both parties and their employees for the specified period, providing a clear framework for workplace relations during that time. This decision reinforces the importance of ensuring that collective agreements comply with the statutory requirements and the need for good faith bargaining between employers and unions.

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