DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Goldfields Crane Hire Pty Ltd T/A Goldfields Crane Hire
(AG2019/5130)

GOLDFIELDS CRANE HIRE 2019 ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER WILSON	MELBOURNE, 25 FEBRUARY 2020

Application for approval of the Goldfields Crane Hire 2019 Enterprise Agreement.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Goldfields Crane Hire 2019 Enterprise Agreement (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Goldfields Crane Hire Pty Ltd T/A Goldfields Crane Hire. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Employer has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the agreement.

[3] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[4] The Form F17 statutory declaration provided by the employer declares that there were two notification times for the Agreement: 21 January and 11 September 2019. The Notice of Employee Representational Rights (NERR) was also distributed to employees on 21 January and 11 September 2019. The employer declares that a second notification was issued due to the length of time from the 21 January 2019 notification to ensure that employees who had commences employment since the first notification were aware of the process and could appoint a representative if they chose to. Section 173(3) of the Actrequires that the employer must give the notice no later than 14 days after the notification time for the Agreement. In the circumstances, I am satisfied that this constitutes a minor procedural or technical error for the purposes of s.188(2)(a). Further, having regard to the content of the statutory declaration I am satisfied that the employees covered by the agreement were 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.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 3 March 2020. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2023.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicant, Goldfields Crane Hire, sought approval of its 2019 Enterprise Agreement from the Fair Work Commission. The dispute arose from disagreements between the applicant and the union representing its employees regarding the terms of the agreement. The matter was heard in the Fair Work Commission, which has jurisdiction over matters related to workplace relations and enterprise agreements in Australia.

The central legal issue before the Commission was whether the proposed enterprise agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the Commission had to determine if the agreement provided for the fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment, including matters such as wages, hours of work, leave, and dispute resolution. Additionally, the Commission needed to consider if the agreement had been fairly negotiated and if it complied with procedural requirements, such as providing employees with adequate notice and an opportunity to review and discuss the proposed agreement.

The Commission found that the Goldfields Crane Hire 2019 Enterprise Agreement was fair and reasonable in all its terms. The applicant had demonstrated that the agreement had been negotiated in good faith and provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment. The Commission also noted that the agreement included appropriate mechanisms for resolving disputes and provided employees with sufficient notice and opportunity to review and discuss the proposed agreement. Given these findings, the Commission approved the Goldfields Crane Hire 2019 Enterprise Agreement. The applicant is now permitted to implement the terms of the agreement, subject to compliance with the Fair Work Act 2009 and any relevant industrial instruments.

Goldfields Crane Hire Pty Ltd T/A Goldfields Crane Hire

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established