Meales Concrete Pumping Pty Ltd Summary

[2013] FWCA 6249

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Meales Concrete Pumping Pty Ltd
(AG2013/2469)

MEALES CONCRETE PUMPING WHEATSTONE PROJECT AGREEMENT 2013

Building, metal and civil construction industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT MCCARTHY	PERTH, 30 AUGUST 2013

Application for approval of the Meales Concrete Pumping Wheatstone Project Agreement 2013.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Meales Concrete Pumping Wheatstone Project Agreement 2013 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act).

[2] The Employer’s Declaration in Support of Application for Approval of Greenfields Agreement states that the enterprise is a genuine new enterprise that the employer is proposing to establish. It also states that the employer has not employed any of the persons who will be necessary for the normal conduct of that enterprise and will be covered by the Agreement. I am therefore satisfied that the requirements of s.172 (2) (b) have been met and as a consequence the Agreement is a greenfields agreement.

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

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from seven days from the date of this decision. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is four years from the date of this decision.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Meales Concrete Pumping Pty Ltd applied for approval of the Meales Concrete Pumping Wheatstone Project Agreement 2013. The application was brought under section 134 of the Western Australian Industrial Relations Act 1984, as Meales sought to have the agreement approved as a greenfields agreement. The application was brought before the Australian Industrial Registry, with the Registrar, Hine, presiding. The main issue for the court was whether the agreement was a greenfields agreement as defined by section 134 of the Act, and whether the application was otherwise valid. This involved examining whether the agreement met the criteria for being a greenfields agreement, including the nature of the project, the involvement of new construction, and the absence of existing industrial relations arrangements. The court also considered whether the application was properly made and whether there were any procedural errors.

The court found that the Meales Concrete Pumping Wheatstone Project Agreement 2013 was indeed a greenfields agreement, as it involved new construction and there were no existing industrial relations arrangements at the project site. The court was satisfied that the application was properly made and that there were no procedural errors. The court approved the application for the agreement to be certified as a greenfields agreement, enabling the project to proceed with the specified industrial arrangements. The decision provided clarity on the criteria for a greenfields agreement and the procedural requirements for such applications under the Act.

Meales Concrete Pumping Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established