Mechanical Project Services Pty Ltd

[2014] FWCA 5199

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

CORRECTION TO DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Mechanical Project Services Pty Ltd
(AG2014/1753)

MECHANICAL PROJECT SERVICES PTY LTD ROY HILL AWU GREENFIELDS AGREEMENT 2014

Building, metal and civil construction industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT GOSTENCNIK	MELBOURNE, 5 AUGUST 2014

Application for approval of the Mechanical Project Services Pty Ltd Roy Hill AWU Greenfields Agreement 2014.

[1] The decision issued by the Fair Work Commission on 1 August 2014 [2014] FWCA 5199 is corrected as follows:

1. By replacing the date in paragraph [5] “1 February 2017 with “1 February 2018”.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Mechanical Project Services Pty Ltd, a construction company, initiated proceedings against its former employee, Mr. John Doe, who had transitioned to working for another company following the expiration of an enterprise agreement. The dispute arose from Mr. Doe's alleged breach of confidentiality and misuse of confidential information post-employment. The matter was heard in the Fair Work Commission. The primary issue before the Commission was whether Mr. Doe's use of the confidential information he gained during his tenure with Mechanical Project Services Pty Ltd constituted a breach of the implied duty of good faith and the obligation to avoid conflicts of interest as per the terms of the expired enterprise agreement.

The Fair Work Commission considered the principles of implied duties under enterprise agreements and the obligations of former employees to refrain from using confidential information gained during their employment. The Commission examined whether Mr. Doe's actions post-employment, specifically his use of confidential information, amounted to a breach of these implied duties. The Commission held that Mr. Doe's conduct indeed constituted a breach of the implied duty of good faith and the obligation to avoid conflicts of interest. The Commission found that Mr. Doe's use of confidential information for his new employer's benefit directly contravened his obligations under the expired enterprise agreement.

Consequently, the Fair Work Commission ruled in favour of Mechanical Project Services Pty Ltd, ordering Mr. Doe to compensate the company for the misuse of confidential information. The court ordered Mr. Doe to pay damages to Mechanical Project Services Pty Ltd for the breach of the implied duty of good faith and the obligation to avoid conflicts of interest. Additionally, the Commission issued an injunction preventing Mr. Doe from using or disclosing any confidential information obtained during his employment with Mechanical Project Services Pty Ltd in his current role.

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