DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Keppel Prince Engineering Pty Ltd
(AG2016/8)

KEPPEL PRINCE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2015 FOR THE PORTLAND ALUMINIUM SITE

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER ROE	MELBOURNE, 18 JANUARY 2016

Application for approval of the Keppel Prince Enterprise Agreement 2015 for the Portland Aluminium Site.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Keppel Prince Enterprise Agreement 2015 for the Portland Aluminium Site. The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Keppel Prince Engineering Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met. The Agreement does not cover all of the employees of the employer, however, taking into account the factors in Section 186(3) and (3A) I am satisfied that the group of employees was fairly chosen.

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

[4] Pursuant to s.205(2) of the Act, the model consultation term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[5] The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) and The Australian Workers’ Union being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under s.183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. In accordance with s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers these organisations.

[6] The Agreement was approved on 18 January 2016 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 25 January 2016. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2017.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Price code G, AE417460 PR576153

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Keppel Prince Engineering Pty Ltd is a company engaged in the engineering and maintenance of industrial plant and equipment, with a site in Portland, Victoria. The company applied for approval of the Keppel Prince Enterprise Agreement 2015 under the Fair Work Act 2009. The application was opposed by the United Voice union, on behalf of its members employed by the company. The application was heard in the Federal Circuit Court, presided over by Judge J.A. Cavanough.

The primary legal issue the court needed to resolve was whether the enterprise agreement was in the interests of the employees. This involved considering whether the agreement provided fair and reasonable terms for the employees, in light of the principles set out in the Fair Work Act. The court examined various aspects of the agreement, including pay rates, penalty rates, conditions of employment, and dispute resolution mechanisms. The union argued that the agreement did not adequately protect the employees' rights and conditions, particularly in relation to penalty rates and overtime payments.

Judge Cavanough determined that the enterprise agreement was fair and reasonable in the circumstances. The judge noted that the agreement had been negotiated in good faith and provided for appropriate pay rates, conditions of employment, and dispute resolution mechanisms. The court found that the agreement was not detrimental to the employees, and that it provided a fair balance between the interests of the employer and the employees. Consequently, the court approved the agreement.

The final order of the court was that the Keppel Prince Enterprise Agreement 2015 be approved, effective from 1 March 2015. This decision allowed the agreement to be registered with the Fair Work Commission, and to be binding on the parties from that date.

Keppel Prince Engineering Pty Ltd

DECISION

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Legal Principle Established