DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union
(AG2016/6966)

IG PARKER PTY LTD AND THE CFMEU (VICTORIAN CONSTRUCTION AND GENERAL DIVISION) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016 - 2018

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER GREGORY	MELBOURNE, 17 NOVEMBER 2016

Application for approval of the IG Parker Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Enterprise Agreement 2016 - 2018.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the IG Parker Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Enterprise Agreement 2016 - 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, 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 24 November 2016. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2018.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the Fair Work Commission involved an application for the approval of the IG Parker Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Enterprise Agreement 2016 - 2018. The parties to the agreement were IG Parker Pty Ltd, an employer, and the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union, a union representing employees. The dispute centred on whether the agreement met the statutory requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The central legal issues addressed by the Commission were whether the agreement contained all the mandatory terms prescribed by the Act, and if the process of reaching the agreement complied with the procedural requirements for enterprise agreements. Specifically, the Commission examined whether the agreement included all the minimum entitlements and protections required by law, and if the union had followed the correct procedures in negotiating and finalising the agreement with the employer.

In its decision, the Fair Work Commission found that the agreement did contain all the mandatory terms required by the Act, including provisions for wages, hours of work, and other employment conditions. The Commission also determined that the union had followed the correct procedures in negotiating the agreement, including providing the employer with adequate notice of the intention to negotiate and allowing a reasonable period for negotiation. The Commission approved the enterprise agreement on the basis that it met the statutory requirements and was in the best interests of the employees.

As a result of the Commission's decision, the IG Parker Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Enterprise Agreement 2016 - 2018 was approved and will now be binding on the parties. The final orders of the Commission included the approval of the agreement, and a direction that the agreement 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