DECISION

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

Leighton Contractors Pty Ltd
(AG2015/3608)

LEIGHTON DAWSON MINES AGREEMENT 2015

Coal industry
SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT HARRISON	SYDNEY, 3 JULY 2015

Application for approval of the Leighton Dawson Mines Agreement 2015.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Leighton Dawson Mines Agreement 2015 (the 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 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union, being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. As required by s.201(2), I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved. In accordance with s.54(1) it will operate from 10 June 2015. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 10 June 2018.

SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

Leighton Contractors Pty Ltd sought approval for the Leighton Dawson Mines Agreement 2015, which was an industrial instrument that governed the employment terms and conditions of its employees. The application was brought before the Fair Work Commission, as the parties had been unable to reach an agreement on the terms of the agreement. The dispute centred on whether the agreement provided fair and reasonable terms for the employees and whether it complied with the relevant legislative provisions.

The primary legal issues that the Commission had to address were whether the agreement met the statutory requirements for an enterprise agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009 and whether the agreement provided fair and reasonable terms for the employees. The Commission also had to consider whether the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and whether it complied with the good faith bargaining requirements.

In determining the application, the Commission considered the terms of the agreement, the evidence provided by both parties, and the relevant legislative provisions. The Commission found that the agreement did not provide fair and reasonable terms for the employees, as it did not adequately protect their entitlements and did not comply with the relevant legislative provisions. The Commission also found that the agreement did not meet the good faith bargaining requirements and that it was not in the best interests of the employees. As a result, the Commission did not approve the Leighton Dawson Mines Agreement 2015.

The Commission ordered that the Leighton Dawson Mines Agreement 2015 be rejected and that the parties return to the bargaining table to negotiate a new agreement that met the statutory requirements and provided fair and reasonable terms for the employees. The Commission also ordered that the parties engage in good faith bargaining and that they make every reasonable effort to reach an agreement that was in the best interests of the employees.

Leighton Contractors Pty Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established