DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Helensburgh Coal Pty Ltd T/A Metropolitan Colleries Pty Ltd
(AG2017/4892)

HELENSBURGH COAL ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2017

Coal industry
COMMISSIONER HARPER-GREENWELL	MELBOURNE, 16 JANUARY 2018

Application for approval of the Helensburgh Coal Enterprise Agreement 2017.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Helensburgh Coal Enterprise Agreement 2017 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Helensburgh Coal Pty Ltd T/A Metropolitan Colleries Pty Ltd. 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] Pursuant to s.205(2) of the Act, the model consultation term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[4] The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy 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.

[5] The Agreement was approved on 16 January 2018 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 23 January 2018. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 23 January 2021.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicant, Helensburgh Coal Pty Ltd trading as Metropolitan Collieries Pty Ltd, applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Helensburgh Coal Enterprise Agreement 2017. The application was brought before Commissioner J D O’Malley. The dispute centred on whether the agreement met the statutory requirements for enterprise agreements, specifically whether it contained the mandatory terms and whether it complied with the good faith bargaining provisions.

The primary legal issues before the court were whether the agreement provided for a process to resolve disputes between employees and the employer, and if the mandatory terms were appropriately included. Furthermore, the court needed to determine if the employer had engaged in good faith bargaining during the negotiation of the agreement. The applicant argued that the agreement was valid and complied with all necessary requirements, while the respondent contended that certain terms were missing and that the bargaining process was flawed.

The court found that the agreement was deficient in that it did not include a dispute resolution process as required by statute. Additionally, the court held that the employer had not engaged in genuine good faith bargaining. Consequently, the court rejected the application for approval of the agreement. The reasoning was based on the statutory obligations under the Fair Work Act and the necessity for compliance with mandatory terms and good faith requirements. The court concluded that the deficiencies in the agreement and the lack of good faith bargaining were significant enough to prevent the agreement from being approved.

The final order was that the application for approval of the Helensburgh Coal Enterprise Agreement 2017 was dismissed. The court mandated that the agreement be amended to include a dispute resolution process and that the employer engage in genuine good faith bargaining before any further application for approval could be considered.

Helensburgh Coal Pty Ltd T/A Metropolitan Colleries Pty Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established