DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Interstate Electrical Services Pty Ltd
(AG2019/2372)

INTERSTATE ELECTRICAL SERVICE PTY LTD SINGLE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2019

Electrical contracting industry
COMMISSIONER PLATT	ADELAIDE, 19 AUGUST 2019

Application for approval of the Interstate Electrical Service Pty Ltd Single Enterprise Agreement 2019.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Interstate Electrical Service Pty Ltd Single Enterprise Agreement 2019 (the Agreement) pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) by Interstate Electrical Services Pty Ltd. The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The matter was allocated to my Chambers on 23 July 2019.

[3] On 30 July and 9 August 2019, I conducted telephone conferences with the parties to seek clarification about aspects of the Agreement and invited the Applicant to address these matters including the provision of an undertaking.

[4] The Applicant has submitted an undertaking in the required form dated 14 August 2019. The undertaking deals with the following topics:

• The Applicant has inserted a National Employment Standards (NES) precedence clause.

• Casual employees will be entitled to unpaid personal/carer’s leave in accordance with the NES.

• The definition of a shift worker will be for the purposes of the NES.

• Any deductions from an employee’s final pay will be in compliance with ss. 324 and 326 of the Act.

• Leave for jury service will be provided in accordance with the NES.

• Where an employee is required to work less than five consecutive afternoon or night shifts in a week, they will be paid in accordance with the overtime provisions at clause 27.3 of the Agreement.

• For the purposes of clause 17.1 of the Agreement, any off the job training for apprentices will be considered time worked and paid at the applicable hourly rate.

• For the purposes of clause 40.2.4, where an employee fails to give notice, the money withheld will be reduced to the amount of notice given by the employee.

• The Applicant has provided a revised rates of pay table for adult apprentices.

[5] A copy of the undertaking has been provided to the bargaining representatives and I have sought their views in accordance with s.190(4) of the Act. The bargaining representatives did not express any view on the undertaking.

[6] The undertaking appears to meet the requirements of s.190(3) of the Act and I have accepted it. As a result, the undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

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

[8] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 7 days from the date of approval of the Agreement. The nominal expiry date is 18 August 2023.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Interstate Electrical Services Pty Ltd applied for approval of their 2019 Single Enterprise Agreement. The Fair Work Commission heard the application. The dispute centred around whether the agreement complied with the Fair Work Act 2009 and whether it met the requirements for approval under the Fair Work Regulations 2009.

The primary legal issue was whether the agreement satisfied the procedural and substantive requirements for approval. Specifically, the Commission needed to determine if the agreement was made in accordance with the mandatory provisions of the Fair Work Act and if it was a bona fide agreement. The Commission also considered whether the agreement met the requirements for a single enterprise agreement under the Fair Work Act.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement was made in accordance with the mandatory provisions of the Fair Work Act. It was a bona fide agreement that was made without undue influence or coercion. The Commission also found that the agreement met the requirements for a single enterprise agreement under the Fair Work Act. The agreement provided for proper consultation and negotiation processes and contained all the required terms and conditions of employment. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and the employer.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Interstate Electrical Services Pty Ltd Single Enterprise Agreement 2019. The agreement will now apply to the employees covered by the agreement from the effective date. The employer and employees are bound by the terms and conditions of the agreement, and it will regulate their employment relationship for the duration of the agreement.

Interstate Electrical Services Pty Ltd

DECISION

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