DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union
(AG2015/6194)

THE TRUSTEE FOR WILLIAMS FAMILY TRUST T/A STEEL STRUCTURES AUSTRALIA AND CFMEU UNION COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT 2015 - 2019

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER ROE	MELBOURNE, 26 NOVEMBER 2015

Application for approval of The Trustee for Williams Family Trust T/A Steel Structures Australia and CFMEU Union Collective Agreement 2015 - 2019.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as The Trustee for Williams Family Trust T/A Steel Structures Australia and CFMEU Union Collective Agreement 2015 - 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. The Agreement does not cover all of the employees of the employer, however, taking into account the factors in Section 186(3) and (3A) I am satisfied that the group of employees was fairly chosen.

[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 was approved on 26 November 2015 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 3 December 2015. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 2 July 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case involved an application for the approval of a collective agreement between The Trustee for Williams Family Trust T/A Steel Structures Australia and the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union. The application was brought before the Fair Work Commission of Australia. The dispute centred on whether the proposed collective agreement met the necessary criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The legal issues that the court had to decide included whether the agreement complied with the provisions of the Fair Work Act, specifically sections 232 and 233. These sections require that the agreement is free from prohibited content, does not contain terms that are otherwise lawful, and does not have the effect of reducing or limiting the operation of a law. The court also had to consider whether the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and the employer, as required by section 230 of the Act.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement did not contain any prohibited content and that it did not have the effect of reducing or limiting the operation of any law. The Commission also found that the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and the employer. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement provided for appropriate protections for employees and provided for fair and reasonable terms of employment. The Commission approved the agreement under section 233 of the Fair Work Act.

The Fair Work Commission approved the agreement and made an order under section 233 of the Fair Work Act. The order approved the agreement and specified the period of its operation, which was from 1 January 2015 to 31 December 2019. The order also specified that the agreement was to be registered with the Fair Work Commission.

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