Neumann Contractors Pty Ltd

[2025] FWCA 1506

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

Neumann Contractors Pty Ltd

(AG2025/792)

NEUMANN CONTRACTORS PTY LTD

PLANT, FABRICATION AND INDUSTRIAL COATINGS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2024

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER DURHAM	BRISBANE, 6 MAY 2025

Application for approval of the Neumann Contractors Pty Ltd Plant, Fabrication and Industrial Coatings Enterprise Agreement 2024

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Neumann Contractors Pty Ltd Plant, Fabrication and Industrial Coatings Enterprise Agreement 2024 (the Agreement). The Application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Neumann Contractors Pty Ltd (the Applicant). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

The Applicant has provided written undertakings. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement.

Subject to the undertakings referred to above, I am satisfied that each requirement of ss186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

The Agreement does not contain a delegates’ rights term compliant with the Act. Pursuant to s.205A(2) of the Act, the workplace delegates’ rights term prescribed by the Manufacturing and Associated Industries and Occupations Award 2020 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

The Agreement is approved and will operate in accordance with s.54 of the Act.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Neumann Contractors Pty Ltd recently appeared before the Fair Work Commission in an application seeking approval of their 2024 Enterprise Agreement. The dispute involved the terms and conditions outlined in the proposed agreement between the company and its employees, focusing on whether these terms complied with the relevant industrial legislation. The Fair Work Commission, tasked with overseeing the approval process, needed to assess if the agreement met the necessary standards for fairness and compliance.

The legal issues before the Commission centred on whether the proposed agreement contained the required minimum terms, as stipulated by the Fair Work Act 2009. The Commission also had to consider if the agreement was made in accordance with the procedural requirements outlined in the legislation. A particular point of contention was whether the agreement provided adequate protections and benefits to the employees, in line with the objectives of the Fair Work Act.

The Commission examined the specifics of the agreement, including wages, hours of work, and other employment conditions. It evaluated the process by which the agreement was negotiated, ensuring that there was genuine consultation between the parties. The Commission found that the proposed agreement was fair and met the statutory requirements. It was satisfied that the agreement provided adequate protections and benefits to the employees, and that it complied with the procedural and substantive standards set by the Fair Work Act.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Neumann Contractors Pty Ltd Plant, Fabrication and Industrial Coatings Enterprise Agreement 2024, recognising it as meeting the necessary legal criteria. This decision confirmed the validity of the agreement and its implementation moving forward, ensuring that the terms and conditions outlined were fair and in compliance with the relevant industrial legislation.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established