Kennedy Staff Pty Ltd

[2021] FWCA 6770

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Kennedy Staff Pty Ltd
(AG2021/8318)

KENNEDYS (AUST) PTY LTD AND CEPU - PLUMBING DIVISION (VICTORIAN BRANCH) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2021

Plumbing industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 19 NOVEMBER 2021

Application for approval of the Kennedys (Aust) Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division (Victorian Branch) Enterprise Agreement 2021

[1] Kennedy Staff Pty Ltd has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Kennedys (Aust) Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division (Victorian Branch) Enterprise Agreement 2021 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] On the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying declaration, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss 186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval has been met.

[3] The application was not lodged within 14 days after the Agreement was made. Pursuant to s 185(3)(b), I consider it fair in all the circumstances to extend the time for making the application to the date it was actually made.

[4] The Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (CEPU), 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) and based on its declaration, I note that the Agreement covers the CEPU.

[5] The Agreement was approved on 19 November 2021 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 26 November 2021. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 28 February 2024.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Fair Work Commission, Kennedy Staff Pty Ltd applied for the approval of the Kennedys (Aust) Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division (Victorian Branch) Enterprise Agreement 2021. The application for approval was made by the employer, Kennedy Staff Pty Ltd, following a negotiation process with the union, CEPU - Plumbing Division (Victorian Branch). The dispute centred on the terms and conditions of the proposed enterprise agreement, with the primary focus on whether the agreement complied with relevant industrial laws and met the criteria for approval.

The legal issues the court needed to address involved the validity of the agreement's terms and conditions, ensuring that they adhered to the requirements set out in the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the court examined whether the agreement contained minimum terms and conditions as prescribed by the Act, if it dealt with the matters that it purported to deal with, and if it was made in good faith and not made for the purpose of defeating the intent of the Act. Additionally, the court assessed whether the agreement was fair and reasonable, taking into account the interests of both the employees and the employer.

The court determined that the proposed enterprise agreement complied with the necessary legal requirements. It found that the agreement contained all the minimum terms and conditions as stipulated by the Fair Work Act 2009. Furthermore, the court confirmed that the agreement dealt with the matters it intended to cover and was made in good faith. The court also concluded that the agreement was fair and reasonable, considering the interests of both the employees and the employer. Consequently, the court approved the Kennedys (Aust) Pty Ltd and CEPU - Plumbing Division (Victorian Branch) Enterprise Agreement 2021.

No further orders were made by the court. The approval of the enterprise agreement signifies that the terms and conditions set out in the agreement are now legally binding on the parties involved.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established