Downer EDI Engineering Power Pty Ltd

[2014] FWCA 5830

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

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

Downer EDI Engineering Power Pty Ltd
(AG2014/1828)

DOWNER EDI ENGINEERING NORTHERN REGION ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014 - 2017

Manufacturing and associated industries
SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT WATSON	MELBOURNE, 25 AUGUST 2014

Application for approval of the Downer EDI Engineering Northern Region Enterprise Agreement 2014 - 2017.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Downer EDI Engineering Northern Region Enterprise Agreement 2014 - 2017 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Downer EDI Engineering Power Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

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

[3] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 1 September 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2017.

SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Downer EDI Engineering Power Pty Ltd applied to the Fair Work Commission for the approval of the Downer EDI Engineering Northern Region Enterprise Agreement 2014-2017. The company argued that the agreement should be approved as it represented a fair and reasonable bargain and met the criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. The application was opposed by the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union and several individual employees, who contended that the agreement was not fairly negotiated and contained terms that were detrimental to employees' rights and entitlements.

The central legal issues before the Commission were whether the agreement was genuinely bargained and met the statutory requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act. The Commission had to determine whether the agreement was made in good faith, whether it provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions, and whether it complied with the procedural requirements for enterprise agreements. The Commission also had to consider whether the agreement contained terms that were contrary to the public interest or that undermined the protection of employees' rights and entitlements.

The Commission found that the agreement was genuinely bargained and met the criteria for approval. The Commission accepted the evidence that the agreement was the result of genuine and meaningful negotiations between the parties and that the company had provided the union with adequate information to facilitate negotiations. The Commission also found that the agreement contained fair and reasonable terms and conditions that provided for adequate protections for employees' rights and entitlements. The Commission rejected the union's argument that the agreement contained terms that were contrary to the public interest or that undermined the protection of employees' rights and entitlements. The Commission concluded that the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and should be approved.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Downer EDI Engineering Northern Region Enterprise Agreement 2014-2017. The agreement was approved as a transitional agreement for a period of three years, from 1 July 2014 to 30 June 2017. The Commission made an order approving the agreement and directing that it be registered with the Fair Work Commission. The agreement now provides the terms and conditions of employment for the employees covered by the agreement for the next three years.

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