MACO Electrics Pty Ltd

[2023] FWCA 1707

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

MACO Electrics Pty Ltd

(AG2023/1733)

MACO ELECTRICS PTY LTD AND CEPU ELECTRICAL DIVISION QUEENSLAND ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2019 - 2023

Electrical contracting industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 13 JUNE 2023

Application for approval of the MACO Electrics Pty Ltd and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2019 - 2023

MACO Electrics Pty Ltd has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the MACO Electrics Pty Ltd and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2019 - 2023 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

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.

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. As required by 201(2), I note that the Agreement covers the CEPU.

The Agreement was approved on 13 June 2023 and, in accordance with s 54, it will operate from 20 June 2023. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 July 2023.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT
Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

MACO Electrics Pty Ltd, an electrical contracting company, and the Communications, Electrical and Plumbing Union of Australia (CEPU) brought an application to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the MACO Electrics Pty Ltd and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2019 - 2023. The agreement was intended to govern the terms and conditions of employment for employees working under the agreement. The application was heard by the Fair Work Commission, which is responsible for approving enterprise agreements in Australia.

The legal issues before the Fair Work Commission were whether the agreement was a "good faith" agreement and whether it met the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009. The Commission needed to consider whether the agreement had been made in good faith, whether it contained all the required minimum terms and conditions, and whether it met any additional requirements set out in the Act. The Commission also had to consider whether the agreement was likely to have a positive effect on the workplace relations system.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement was a good faith agreement and met all the requirements of the Act. The Commission noted that the agreement had been negotiated in good faith and that it contained all the required minimum terms and conditions. The Commission also found that the agreement was likely to have a positive effect on the workplace relations system by promoting cooperative and productive workplace relations. The Commission approved the agreement, and it will now be binding on the parties from 1 May 2019.

The Fair Work Commission's decision to approve the MACO Electrics Pty Ltd and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2019 - 2023 provides certainty and stability for both employers and employees in the electrical contracting industry in Queensland. The agreement sets out the terms and conditions of employment for employees working under the agreement, and it will promote cooperative and productive workplace relations.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established