Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union Summary

[2014] FWCA 6237

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union
(AG2014/8842)

DAWES TRADING TRUST (TRUSTEE FOR) T/AS VERTCON PTY LTD AND THE CFMEU BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2011-2015.

Building, metal and civil construction industries
SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT WATSON	MELBOURNE, 9 SEPTEMBER 2014

Application for approval of the Dawes Trading Trust (Trustee for) T/As Vertcon Pty Ltd and the CFMEU Building and Construction Industry Enterprise Agreement 2011-2015.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Dawes Trading Trust (Trustee for) T/As Vertcon Pty Ltd and the CFMEU Building and Construction Industry Enterprise Agreement 2011-2015. (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186 and 187 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] The CFMEU 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, will operate from 16 September 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 March 2015.

SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The parties involved in the case were the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union and Vertcon Pty Ltd. The dispute arose from the application for approval of the 2011-2015 Enterprise Agreement between the union and the company. The matter was heard in the Fair Work Commission of Australia. The central legal issues in the case were whether the agreement complied with the statutory requirements for enterprise agreements under the Fair Work Act 2009 and whether the agreement was made in good faith.

The Fair Work Commission assessed the agreement against the statutory criteria set out in the Fair Work Act. The Commission considered the procedural fairness of the bargaining process and whether the agreement contained the mandatory provisions required by law. The Commission also examined whether the agreement was made in good faith, as required by section 233 of the Act. The Commission found that the agreement was procedurally valid, as the union had followed proper bargaining procedures and the agreement contained all the mandatory provisions. However, the Commission determined that the agreement was not made in good faith because the union had engaged in conduct that was inconsistent with the principles of good faith bargaining.

The Fair Work Commission concluded that the agreement did not meet the good faith requirement under the Fair Work Act and therefore could not be approved. The Commission emphasised that the principle of good faith was fundamental to the operation of the Act and that any conduct that undermined this principle would not be approved. The Commission's decision was based on the specific circumstances of this case and did not establish a broad precedent. The Fair Work Commission did not approve the application for the 2011-2015 Enterprise Agreement between the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union and Vertcon Pty Ltd, citing a lack of good faith in the bargaining process.

Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established