Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union

[2014] FWCA 4377

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union
(AG2014/1557)

TIMBERLINK, CFMEU AND AMWU BELL BAY COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT 2014

Timber and paper products industry
COMMISSIONER BLAIR	MELBOURNE, 1 JULY 2014

Application for approval of the Timberlink, CFMEU and AMWU Bell Bay Collective Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of a single-enterprise agreement known as the Timberlink, CFMEU and AMWU Bell Bay Collective Agreement 2014 (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).

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Act, as are relevant to this application for approval, have been met.

[3] The CFMEU and the “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU), being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have each given notice under s.183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. In accordance with s.201(2) of the Act I note that the Agreement covers those organisations.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 9 July 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 January 2016.

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 Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU), the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union (AMWU), and Timberlink. The application was brought before the Fair Work Commission. The dispute centred on the terms of the Bell Bay Collective Agreement 2014, which the unions sought to have recognised and enforced as a lawful agreement.

The central legal issues the Commission needed to address were whether the agreement was genuinely a product of free collective bargaining, whether it complied with the Fair Work Act, and whether it met the criteria for being a lawful agreement. The Commission also had to consider whether the agreement contained any terms that were inconsistent with the Fair Work Act or any other relevant legislation.

The Commission examined the process by which the agreement was negotiated and concluded that it was genuinely a product of free collective bargaining. It found that the agreement complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act, including provisions related to employee representation and the scope of the agreement. The Commission also assessed whether the agreement contained any unlawful terms and found that it did not. Consequently, the Commission approved the agreement, confirming that it was a lawful and enforceable collective agreement.

The Commission's decision was final, and the Bell Bay Collective Agreement 2014 was approved for enforcement. The agreement was to be registered with the Fair Work Commission and would apply to the employees covered by it, ensuring that the terms and conditions outlined in the agreement would govern their employment.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established