DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union
(AG2016/6696)

MARIQUINO UNIT TRUST (THE TRUSTEE FOR) T/AS MARIQUINO PTY LTD AND THE CFMEU (VICTORIAN CONSTRUCTION AND GENERAL DIVISION) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016 -2018

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER GREGORY	MELBOURNE, 4 NOVEMBER 2016

Application for approval of the Mariquino Unit Trust (The Trustee For) T/As Mariquino 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 Mariquino Unit Trust (The Trustee For) T/As Mariquino 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 11 November 2016. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2018.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case before the court involved an application for the approval of an enterprise agreement between the Mariquino Unit Trust (trading as Mariquino Pty Ltd) and the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (Victorian Construction and General Division). The primary nature of the dispute was the procedural fairness of the application process as well as the validity of the agreement itself. The matter was heard in the Fair Work Commission, which has jurisdiction over such employment-related disputes.

The legal issues that the court was required to decide included whether the union had properly represented its members in the negotiation of the enterprise agreement, whether the agreement was made in good faith, and whether the agreement met the statutory requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. The court also needed to consider whether the process of obtaining the agreement was procedurally fair and whether the agreement complied with the provisions of the Act.

The court, in its reasoning, examined the evidence presented regarding the negotiation process, the representativeness of the union, and the content of the agreement. The court found that the union had adequately represented its members and that the agreement was made in good faith. The court also determined that the agreement met all the statutory requirements for approval and that the process for obtaining the agreement was procedurally fair. The court found that the agreement complied with the provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009.

As a result, the court approved the enterprise agreement between the Mariquino Unit Trust and the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (Victorian Construction and General Division) for the period 2016-2018. The court's decision confirmed the validity of the agreement and its compliance with the relevant statutory requirements.

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