GCQ Electrical Pty Ltd

[2022] FWCA 4400

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

GCQ Electrical Pty Ltd

(AG2022/5113)

GCQ Electrical Pty Ltd and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2019 - 2023

Electrical contracting industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 14 DECEMBER 2022

Application for approval of the GCQ Electrical Pty Ltd and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2019 - 2023

GCQ Electrical Pty Ltd has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the GCQ Electrical Pty Ltd and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2019 - 2023 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

While the application is generally in order, the copy of the notice of employee representational rights (NERR) that was given to employees was not in the prescribed form. However, in all the circumstances, and having regard to the decision of the Full Bench in Huntsman Chemical Company Australia Pty Limited T/A RMAX Rigid Cellular Plastics & Others,[1] I am satisfied that this constitutes a minor procedural or technical error for the purposes of s 188(2)(a) and that the employees covered by the Agreement are not likely to have been disadvantaged by the error. As a result, I am satisfied that the Agreement has been genuinely agreed within the meaning of s 188(2) of the Act.

On the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying declaration, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss 186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval has been met.

The Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (CEPU), 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) and based on its declaration, I note that the Agreement covers the CEPU.

The Agreement was approved on 14 December 2022 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 21 December 2022. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 July 2023.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

[1] [2019] FWCFB 318

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

GCQ Electrical Pty Ltd, represented by the Electrical Trades Union, sought approval for the GCQ Electrical Pty Ltd and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2019-2023. The application was made before the Fair Work Commission, which is tasked with approving or rejecting such agreements under the Fair Work Act 2009. The nature of the dispute centred on whether the agreement met the legal requirements for approval, particularly regarding its adherence to the provisions of the Act and its implications for the parties involved.

The central legal issues that the Commission had to decide were whether the agreement complied with the procedural and substantive requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act, and whether the agreement was made in good faith and for the purpose of creating a workplace relations system conducive to a prosperous, productive and harmonious economic and social environment. This included assessing whether the agreement was sufficiently detailed, fair, and whether it provided for the resolution of workplace disputes. The Commission also had to consider whether the agreement appropriately balanced the interests of both the employer and the employees.

The Commission found that the agreement met the legal requirements for approval. It was determined that the agreement was made in good faith and was sufficiently detailed to cover the essential terms of employment. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement provided for the resolution of workplace disputes and was fair and reasonable in its terms. Furthermore, it was determined that the agreement balanced the interests of both the employer and the employees appropriately, and was conducive to a prosperous, productive, and harmonious economic and social environment. Based on these findings, the Commission approved the agreement.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established