DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

CSR Building Products Ltd T/A CSR Bricks & Roofing
(AG2015/336)

CSR BRICKS & ROOFING - VERMONT, OPERATORS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER RYAN	MELBOURNE, 19 MARCH 2015

Application for approval of the CSR Bricks & Roofing - Vermont, Operators Enterprise Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the CSR Bricks & Roofing - Vermont, Operators Enterprise Agreement 2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) and was made by CSR Building Products Ltd T/A CSR Bricks & Roofing. The agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] An undertaking has been given in relation to the superannuation provisions of the Agreement and this undertaking has become a term of the Agreement in accordance with s.191(2) of the Act and is appended at Appendix A.

[3] The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU), being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. As required by s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the CFMEU.

[4] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54(1), will operate from 26 March 2015. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 March 2017.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

APPENDIX A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

CSR Building Products Ltd, trading as CSR Bricks & Roofing, applied to the Fair Work Commission for the approval of the Vermont, Operators Enterprise Agreement 2014. The dispute involved the terms and conditions of employment for operators within the Vermont site of CSR Bricks & Roofing, with the Fair Work Commission tasked with ensuring the agreement met the necessary legal standards under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The legal issues before the Commission included whether the agreement complied with the "better off overall test" (BOOT) and whether it adhered to the requirements for good faith bargaining and the procedural fairness. The BOOT requires that employees be no worse off financially under the new agreement than they would be under their previous terms. Additionally, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement was made in good faith and whether the appropriate procedures were followed during its negotiation.

The Commission found that the agreement was indeed made in good faith and that the procedural fairness was observed. It concluded that the agreement met the BOOT, as employees were not disadvantaged financially and in some cases were better off. The terms of the agreement were deemed to be fair and reasonable, providing appropriate protections and benefits to the employees. Consequently, the Commission approved the agreement.

The Fair Work Commission approved the CSR Bricks & Roofing - Vermont, Operators Enterprise Agreement 2014, confirming its compliance with the relevant legal standards. This decision ensures that the agreement will govern the employment conditions of the operators at the Vermont site, providing a legally binding framework for their terms of employment.

CSR Building Products Ltd T/A CSR Bricks & Roofing

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established