DECISION

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

Engineering Australia P/L (McKenzie Family Trust)
(AG2017/971)

ENGINEERING AUSTRALIA P/L (MCKENZIE FAMILY TRUST) AND AMWU METAL ENGINEERING ON-SITE CONSTRUCTION AGREEMENT 2014

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER ROE	MELBOURNE, 30 MARCH 2017

Application for approval of the Engineering Australia P/L (McKenzie Family Trust) and AMWU Metal Engineering On-Site Construction Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Engineering Australia P/L (McKenzie Family Trust) and AMWU Metal Engineering On-Site Construction Agreement 2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Engineering Australia P/L (McKenzie Family Trust). 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 Australian Manufacturing Workers 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.

[4] The Agreement was approved on 30 March 2017 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 6 April 2017. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2017.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Fair Work Commission, the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union (AMWU) applied for approval of the Engineering Australia P/L (McKenzie Family Trust) and AMWU Metal Engineering On-Site Construction Agreement 2014. The applicant argued that the agreement, which was made with Engineering Australia P/L, was a greenfields agreement and therefore eligible for approval. The respondent, Engineering Australia P/L, opposed the application, contending that the agreement did not meet the criteria for approval and that it would be detrimental to the business.

The central legal issue before the Commission was whether the agreement was a greenfields agreement, which is eligible for approval, or whether it was a transfer agreement, which is not. The Commission needed to determine whether the agreement was made in relation to a new workplace that had not previously been covered by an existing agreement, and whether the agreement provided for the first time the terms and conditions of employment for employees at that workplace. The Commission also needed to consider whether the agreement was made in good faith and whether it was in the best interests of the employees.

The Commission found that the agreement was a greenfields agreement and therefore eligible for approval. The Commission accepted that the agreement was made in relation to a new workplace that had not previously been covered by an existing agreement, and that it provided for the first time the terms and conditions of employment for employees at that workplace. The Commission also found that the agreement was made in good faith and that it was in the best interests of the employees. The Commission noted that the agreement provided for a number of benefits for employees, including a higher base rate of pay than the applicable award, and that it contained a dispute resolution procedure that was fair and efficient.

The Commission approved the agreement, subject to a number of modifications. The modifications included changes to the dispute resolution procedure and the removal of a provision that allowed for the termination of employees' contracts for operational reasons. The Commission considered that these modifications were necessary to ensure that the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and to prevent any potential detriment to the employees.

Engineering Australia P/L (McKenzie Family Trust)

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established