DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union
(AG2016/6230)

COMPOSITE CLADDING (VIC) PTY LTD AND THE CFMEU (VICTORIAN CONSTRUCTION AND GENERAL DIVISION) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016-20

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER GREGORY	MELBOURNE, 11 OCTOBER 2016

Application for approval of the COMPOSITE CLADDING (VIC) 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 COMPOSITE CLADDING (VIC) PTY LTD and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Enterprise Agreement 2016-20 (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 18 October 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 court involved the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) and Composite Cladding (Vic) Pty Ltd. The dispute centred on the approval of an enterprise agreement between the two parties for the period 2016 to 2018. The application for the approval of this agreement was brought before the Australian Industrial Relations Commission.

The primary legal issue the court had to address was whether the terms and conditions set out in the proposed enterprise agreement complied with the relevant industrial relations laws. Specifically, the court needed to consider whether the agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009 and whether it contained provisions that were procedurally and substantively fair. The court also had to determine if the agreement had been genuinely bargained between the parties, and whether it was consistent with the principles of the national workplace relations system.

The court carefully examined the provisions of the enterprise agreement, taking into account the legal framework governing such agreements. It found that the agreement was procedurally sound as it had been the product of genuine bargaining between the parties and had followed the necessary procedural requirements. The court also assessed the substantive fairness of the agreement and concluded that it was consistent with the national workplace relations system and did not contain any provisions that were manifestly unfair. The court was satisfied that the agreement met all the necessary criteria for approval and found that it should be approved as it stood.

The final orders of the court were that the enterprise agreement between Composite Cladding (Vic) Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) for the years 2016 to 2018 be approved. This decision was based on the court's finding that the agreement was the product of genuine bargaining, was procedurally sound, and contained provisions that were substantively fair. The approval of the agreement means that it can now be used as a basis for the terms and conditions of employment for the relevant employees.

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