Corpheus Pty Ltd T/A WA Formcon & Pumping

[2013] FWCA 2412

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Corpheus Pty Ltd T/A WA Formcon & Pumping
(AG2013/723)

WA FORMCON & PUMPING AND EMPLOYEES ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2011-2014

Building, metal and civil construction industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT MCCARTHY	PERTH, 23 APRIL 2013

Application for approval of the WA Formcon & Pumping and Employees Enterprise Agreement 2011-2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the WA Formcon & Pumping and Employees Enterprise Agreement 2011-2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[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 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) of the Act 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 seven days from the date of this decision. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 October 2014.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Fair Work Commission, Corpheus Pty Ltd, trading as WA Formcon & Pumping, applied for approval of the WA Formcon & Pumping and Employees Enterprise Agreement 2011-2014. The applicant, a company involved in the construction industry, sought the Commission's approval of the enterprise agreement, which was intended to regulate the terms and conditions of employment for its employees. The application came before the Commission in response to the parties' inability to reach an agreement regarding the terms of the proposed enterprise agreement.

The central legal issue before the Commission was whether the proposed enterprise agreement met the criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the Commission needed to determine whether the agreement was in the public interest, was free from coercion and undue influence, and contained the required minimum terms and conditions as set out in the Act. Additionally, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement provided for a fair and efficient workplace, and if it balanced the interests of both the employer and the employees.

After reviewing the evidence and submissions from both parties, the Commission found that the proposed enterprise agreement met the criteria for approval. The Commission concluded that the agreement was in the public interest and contained the required minimum terms and conditions. The Commission also found that the agreement was free from coercion and undue influence, and provided for a fair and efficient workplace that balanced the interests of both the employer and the employees. Consequently, the Commission approved the WA Formcon & Pumping and Employees Enterprise Agreement 2011-2014, and the applicant's application was successful.

The Commission's final order was that the WA Formcon & Pumping and Employees Enterprise Agreement 2011-2014 be approved as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009, effective from the date of the Commission's decision. This outcome provided legal certainty for both the employer and the employees, ensuring that the terms and conditions of employment were regulated by the approved enterprise agreement.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established