Custom Resources & Recruitment Pty Ltd Summary

[2014] FWCA 126

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Custom Resources & Recruitment Pty Ltd
(AG2013/10208)

CUSTOM RESOURCES & RECRUITMENT PTY LTD ROY HILL AWU GREENFIELDS AGREEMENT

Building, metal and civil construction industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT GOSTENCNIK	MELBOURNE, 7 JANUARY 2014

Application for approval of the Custom Resources & Recruitment Pty Ltd Roy Hill AWU Greenfields Agreement 2013.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Custom Resources & Recruitment Pty Ltd Roy Hill AWU Greenfields Agreement 2013 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act). It has been made by Custom Resources & Recruitment Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a greenfields agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186 and 187 of the Act, as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] I am satisfied that The Australian Workers’ Union, the employee organisation to be covered by the agreement, is entitled to represent the industrial interests of a majority of employees who will be covered by the Agreement in relation to work that is to be performed under it. I am also satisfied that it is in the public interest to approve the Agreement.

[4] The Agreement was approved on 7 January 2014 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 14 January 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 7 July 2017.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the case of Custom Resources & Recruitment Pty Ltd, the Fair Work Commission was presented with an application for the approval of the Custom Resources & Recruitment Pty Ltd Roy Hill AWU Greenfields Agreement 2013. This agreement, which was entered into under section 186 of the Fair Work Act 2009, was between the applicant, Custom Resources & Recruitment Pty Ltd, and the Australian Workers' Union (AWU). The dispute arose from the specifics of the agreement, which aimed to establish a new enterprise at the Roy Hill mining site. The focus of the case was on whether the agreement complied with the statutory requirements and whether it was in the best interests of the employees it covered.

The central legal issues before the Commission involved whether the agreement met the criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act. These included whether the agreement provided for fair and efficient workplace relations, whether it was in the best interests of the employees, and whether it complied with the relevant provisions of the Act. The Commission also had to consider whether the agreement was genuinely negotiated and whether it provided for a fair and reasonable balance between the parties' interests.

After considering submissions from both parties and reviewing the agreement in detail, the Commission determined that the agreement met the necessary criteria for approval. The Commission found that the agreement provided for efficient and fair workplace relations, that it was in the best interests of the employees, and that it complied with the statutory requirements of the Fair Work Act. The Commission concluded that the agreement had been genuinely negotiated and provided a fair balance between the interests of the employer and the employees. Accordingly, the Commission approved the Custom Resources & Recruitment Pty Ltd Roy Hill AWU Greenfields Agreement 2013, making it a legally binding enterprise agreement.

The final orders of the Commission were that the agreement, as lodged on 10 September 2013, was approved and registered as a greenfields agreement under section 186 of the Fair Work Act 2009. This decision provided a clear framework for the operation of the new enterprise at the Roy Hill mining site, ensuring that it would be governed by the terms of the approved agreement.

Custom Resources & Recruitment Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established