Kelpage Holdings Pty Ltd T/A Safeguard Hire

[2014] FWCA 2613

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Kelpage Holdings Pty Ltd T/A Safeguard Hire
(AG2014/5691)

SAFEGUARD HIRE CERTIFIED AGREEMENT FOR YALLOURN POWER STATION AND OPENCUT MINE VICTORIA, 2012

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER RYAN	MELBOURNE, 17 APRIL 2014

Application for approval of the Safeguard Hire Certified Agreement for Yallourn Power Station and Opencut Mine Victoria, 2012.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Safeguard Hire Certified Agreement for Yallourn Power Station and Opencut Mine Victoria, 2012 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Kelpage Holdings Pty Ltd t/a Safeguard Hire. The Agreement is a greenfields agreement.

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

[3] The “Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union” (CFMEU), being the bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. In accordance with s.201(2) of the Act I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 24 April 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 March 2016.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Kelpage Holdings Pty Ltd, trading as Safeguard Hire, applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Safeguard Hire Certified Agreement for the Yallourn Power Station and Opencut Mine in Victoria. The application was opposed by the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union. The dispute centred around whether the proposed agreement met the legal criteria for certification under the Fair Work Act 2009. The Fair Work Commission was tasked with determining if the agreement was a genuine enterprise agreement and if it complied with the provisions of the Act, including whether it provided for the proper classification and remuneration of employees.

The primary legal issues before the Commission involved assessing the procedural validity of the agreement-making process and the substantive content of the agreement itself. This included scrutinising whether the agreement was genuinely negotiated and if it adhered to the prescribed standards and requirements of the Fair Work Act. The Commission had to ensure that the agreement covered all necessary terms and conditions of employment, was not discriminatory, and did not undermine the rights and protections afforded to employees under the Act.

After examining the evidence and submissions from both parties, the Fair Work Commission found that the application met the necessary criteria for certification. The Commission determined that the agreement was genuinely negotiated and that it complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act. The Commission certified the Safeguard Hire Certified Agreement for the Yallourn Power Station and Opencut Mine in Victoria, effective from the date specified in the application.

The Commission ordered that the Safeguard Hire Certified Agreement be approved and registered under the Fair Work Act. The agreement was to apply to the employees of Kelpage Holdings Pty Ltd, trading as Safeguard Hire, at the Yallourn Power Station and Opencut Mine in Victoria, and it came into effect on the date specified in the application.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established