DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union
(AG2016/5836)

REO CONTROL PTY LIMITED AND CFMEU ACT STEEL-FIXING SECTOR AGREEMENT 2016

Australian Capital Territory
COMMISSIONER GREGORY	MELBOURNE, 29 SEPTEMBER 2016

Application for approval of the Reo Control Pty Limited and CFMEU ACT Steel-Fixing Sector Agreement 2016.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Reo Control Pty Limited and CFMEU ACT Steel-Fixing Sector Agreement 2016 (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 application was not lodged within 14 days after the agreement was made. Pursuant to s.185(3)(b), in all the circumstances I consider it fair to extend the time for making the application to the date it was actually made.

[4] 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.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 6 October 2016. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 March 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the court involved an application for approval of a workplace agreement between Reo Control Pty Limited and the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU). The application was brought before the Fair Work Commission, an Australian independent statutory tribunal, which has the authority to approve, modify or reject enterprise agreements under the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute centred on the validity of the agreement and whether it met the necessary requirements for approval.

The legal issues that the court was required to decide included whether the agreement had been made in accordance with the provisions of the Fair Work Act, if it contained all the mandatory terms and conditions required by the Act, and if the agreement had been made free from any prohibited content. The court also had to consider if the agreement had been made in good faith and if it was genuinely an enterprise agreement. Additionally, the court examined if the agreement provided for the proper protection of employees' rights and interests.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement had been made in accordance with the Fair Work Act and contained all the necessary mandatory terms and conditions. The court was satisfied that the agreement had been made free from prohibited content and was genuinely an enterprise agreement. The Commission also found that the agreement had been made in good faith and provided for the proper protection of employees' rights and interests. As a result, the court approved the Reo Control Pty Limited and CFMEU ACT Steel-Fixing Sector Agreement 2016.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Reo Control Pty Limited and CFMEU ACT Steel-Fixing Sector Agreement 2016, effective from the date of the decision. This approval ensures that the agreement will remain in force and binding on the parties until it is terminated in accordance with its provisions or superseded by a new agreement.

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