DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union
(AG2016/4508)

BURNS CRANES AUSTRALIA PTY LTD AND THE CFMEU MOBILE CRANE HIRING INDUSTRY ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016-2019

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER GREGORY	MELBOURNE, 26 JULY 2016

Application for approval of the Burns Cranes Australia Pty Ltd and the CFMEU Mobile Crane Hiring Industry Enterprise Agreement 2016-2019.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Burns Cranes Australia Pty Ltd and the CFMEU Mobile Crane Hiring Industry Enterprise Agreement 2016-2019 (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, 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, 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 2 August 2016. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union, acting on behalf of its members, applied to the Fair Work Commission for the approval of the Burns Cranes Australia Pty Ltd and the CFMEU Mobile Crane Hiring Industry Enterprise Agreement 2016-2019. Burns Cranes Australia Pty Ltd opposed the application on the basis that the agreement was not in the best interests of the employees. The Fair Work Commission was tasked with determining whether the agreement met the statutory requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The legal issues before the Commission were whether the agreement provided for the fair and reasonable terms of employment, including remuneration and conditions, and whether it was in the best interests of the employees. The Commission also needed to consider whether the agreement complied with the statutory requirements for approval, such as the requirement for the agreement to be in writing and for the employer to have genuinely negotiated the agreement with the union.

In reaching its decision, the Commission noted that the agreement provided for a range of benefits for employees, including pay rates, penalty rates, and leave provisions. The Commission also found that the agreement had been genuinely negotiated between the union and the employer, and that it met the statutory requirements for approval. The Commission concluded that the agreement was in the best interests of the employees, and approved the agreement.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Burns Cranes Australia Pty Ltd and the CFMEU Mobile Crane Hiring Industry Enterprise Agreement 2016-2019. The Commission found that the agreement provided for fair and reasonable terms of employment, and that it had been genuinely negotiated between the union and the employer. The Commission also concluded that the agreement met the statutory requirements for approval, and was in the best interests of the employees. The agreement will now apply to employees of Burns Cranes Australia Pty Ltd and other employers in the mobile crane hiring industry.

Construction, Forestry, 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