JLN Plumbing Industrial & Commercial Pty Ltd

[2022] FWCA 764

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

JLN Plumbing Industrial & Commercial Pty Ltd

(AG2022/521)

JLN Plumbing Industrial & Commercial Pty Ltd and CEPU – Plumbing Division Victorian Branch Enterprise Agreement 2019 – 2023

Plumbing industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 3 MARCH 2022

Application for approval of the JLN Plumbing Industrial & Commercial Pty Ltd and CEPU – Plumbing Division Victorian Branch Enterprise Agreement 2019 – 2023

JLN Plumbing Industrial & Commercial Pty Ltd has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the JLN Plumbing Industrial & Commercial Pty Ltd and CEPU – Plumbing Division Victorian Branch Enterprise Agreement 2019 – 2023 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act).

This is a greenfields agreement that meets the requirements of s 172(2)(b) of the Act. I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss 186 and 187 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval has been met. In accordance with s 187(5) of the Act, I am satisfied that the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (CEPU) is entitled to represent the industrial interests of a majority of employees who will be covered by the Agreement in relation to work that is to be performed under it, and that it is in the public interest to approve the Agreement.

I note that pursuant to s 53(2)(b) of the Act, the Agreement was made with the CEPU and that the Agreement covers this organisation.

The Agreement was approved on 3 March 2022 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 10 March 2022. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 October 2023.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT
Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter under consideration involved the application for approval of the JLN Plumbing Industrial & Commercial Pty Ltd and CEPU – Plumbing Division Victorian Branch Enterprise Agreement 2019 – 2023. The dispute arose from the need to determine whether the enterprise agreement met the necessary standards under the Fair Work Act 2009. The parties involved were the employer, JLN Plumbing Industrial & Commercial Pty Ltd, and the union, CEPU – Plumbing Division Victorian Branch, which had entered into the proposed agreement.

The court was tasked with examining several legal issues, primarily whether the enterprise agreement complied with the provisions of the Fair Work Act. This included ensuring that the agreement was not less favourable than the relevant award or safety net award, was fair and reasonable, and had been negotiated in good faith. The court also had to consider whether the agreement contained provisions that were outside the scope of permissible enterprise bargaining under the Act.

In reaching its decision, the court carefully reviewed the terms of the enterprise agreement against the legal standards set by the Fair Work Act. The court concluded that the agreement was fair and reasonable, and had been negotiated in good faith. It found that the agreement did not contain any terms that were outside the scope of permissible enterprise bargaining and did not result in employees being worse off than they would have been under the applicable award. Consequently, the court approved the enterprise agreement as compliant with the necessary legal requirements.

The final orders of the court were to approve the JLN Plumbing Industrial & Commercial Pty Ltd and CEPU – Plumbing Division Victorian Branch Enterprise Agreement 2019 – 2023, confirming its compliance with the Fair Work Act. The agreement was thus deemed valid and binding on the parties from the date of approval.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established