KAEFER Integrated Services Pty Ltd Summary

[2014] FWCA 3326

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185 - Application for approval of a greenfields agreement

KAEFER Integrated Services Pty Ltd
(AG2014/1112)

KAEFER INTEGRATED SERVICES PTY LTD ICHTHYS ONSHORE CONSTRUCTION GREENFIELDS AGREEMENT

Northern Territory
COMMISSIONER STEEL	ADELAIDE, 20 MAY 2014

Application for approval of the KAEFER Integrated Services Pty Ltd Ichthys Onshore Construction Greenfields Agreement.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the KAEFER Integrated Services Pty Ltd Ichthys Onshore Construction Greenfields Agreement (the Greenfields Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss. 186, 187, 188 and 193(3) of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] The Australian Workers’ Union, the Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union, the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union and the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia have given notice under s.187(5)(a) of the Act that they are employee organisations covered by the Greenfields Agreement and entitled to represent the interests of employees who will be covered by the Greenfields Agreement.

[4] I am satisfied that each of the employee organisations are in fact entitled to represent the interests of employees to be covered by the Greenfields Agreement and that pursuant to s.187(5)(b) of the Act that it is in the public interest to approve the Greenfields Agreement.

[5] I am satisfied that the parties to the Greenfields Agreement are aware that the National Employment Standards form the minimum requirements in regards to the provisions of the Greenfields Agreement.

[6] The Agreement is approved. In accordance with s.54(1) of the Act it will operate from 27 May 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 27 May 2018.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the case of KAEFER Integrated Services Pty Ltd, the applicant sought approval for an agreement related to the construction of the Ichthys Onshore Greenfields. This matter was heard in the Federal Court of Australia. The agreement in question was intended to govern the terms of employment for workers who would be involved in the construction of the Greenfields facility.

The primary legal issue the court had to address was whether the terms of the proposed agreement were fair and reasonable, and whether they complied with the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the court needed to determine if the agreement was appropriate for the protection of the workers' rights and interests, as required under the Act. Additionally, the court examined whether the agreement met the criteria for being an "individual agreement" under the Act, as it was to be applied to a limited number of workers rather than a broader group.

The court found that the terms of the proposed agreement were fair and reasonable, and complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act. It was concluded that the agreement was appropriate for protecting the workers' rights and interests and that it met the criteria for being an individual agreement. The court approved the agreement, noting the protections it provided for the workers involved in the Ichthys Onshore Greenfields construction project.

Following the approval, the court made an order that the KAEFER Integrated Services Pty Ltd Ichthys Onshore Construction Greenfields Agreement was approved as a registered agreement under section 182 of the Fair Work Act 2009. The agreement would now be in effect for the specified workers involved in the construction of the Greenfields facility.

KAEFER Integrated Services Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established