DECISION

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

OneSteel Manufacturing Pty Ltd (Administrator Appointed) T/A Arrium Mining
(AG2016/5304)

ARRIUM MIDDLEBACK RANGES EMPLOYEES ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016

Mining industry
SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT O'CALLAGHAN	ADELAIDE, 6 SEPTEMBER 2016

Application for approval of the Arrium Middleback Ranges Employees Enterprise Agreement 2016.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Arrium Middleback Ranges Employees Enterprise Agreement 2016 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by OneSteel Manufacturing Pty Ltd (Administrator Appointed) T/A Arrium Mining. The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] Arrium Mining have provided undertakings in the following terms:

By correspondence dated 31 August 2016 –

“Operation of the 2016 Agreement:

1. The Company undertakes not to implement any of the changes introduced into the 2016 Agreement.
2. The Company undertakes that the terms of the Arrium Middleback Ranges Employees Enterprise Agreement 2014 (2014 Agreement) will continue to be applied.

Dispute about any matter arising under the 2014 Agreement

3. The Company undertakes that if there is any dispute about any matter arising under the 2014 Agreement, the Company will seek to resolve the dispute under clause 38 – Procedure for Resolving Claims, Issues and Disputes of the 2016 Agreement.

The above undertakings will cease to apply on the operation of the replacement to the OneSteel Agreement.”

By correspondence dated 1 September 2016 –

“Clause 6

1 The Company undertakes to read the reference to “the company, unions and their members” as a reference to “the parties”.

Clauses 30(5) and 48A

2 The Company undertakes to read the references to “the unions” as a reference to “the union or other employee representative”.

Schedule 11, Supported Wage Provisions, paragraph (d)

3 The Company undertakes to read the reference to “the employer and a union party to the award, in consultation with the employee” as a reference to “the employer and the employee (who may appoint a representative for the purposes of this clause)”.

Schedule 11, Supported Wage Provisions, paragraph (h)

4 The Company undertakes to read the reference to “the parties” as a reference to “the employer and the employee (who may appoint a representative for the purposes of this clause)”.

Undertakings 1-4 are given in recognition that all employees are free to become or not become members of industrial associations, and are free to be represented or not represented by industrial associations.

Clauses 33 and 40

5 The Company undertakes to read the references to “National Code of Practice for the Construction Industry and the Australian Government Implementation Guidelines for the National Code of Practice for the Construction Industry” as a reference to “Building Code 2013”.

[3] The above undertakings have been endorsed by the relevant unions.

[4] As a result, the above undertakings are taken to be terms of the Agreement. A full copy of advices provided by the employer are attached to the Agreement as Attachment A and B.

[5] The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU), The Australian Workers’ Union, the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia and the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union, being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under s.183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. In accordance with s.201(2) of the Act I note that the Agreement covers those organisations.

[6] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[7] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 14 September 2016. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 August 2020.

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

In the matter of OneSteel Manufacturing Pty Ltd (Administrator Appointed) trading as Arrium Mining, the Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission was called upon to consider an application for the approval of the Arrium Middleback Ranges Employees Enterprise Agreement 2016. The applicant, OneSteel Manufacturing Pty Ltd, sought to have the agreement approved as a new enterprise agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute arose from the need to ensure that the proposed agreement complied with the statutory requirements for enterprise agreements and provided a fair balance of interests between the employer and the employees.

The legal issues before the court involved the examination of whether the agreement met the procedural and substantive requirements of the Fair Work Act. Procedurally, the court needed to ascertain if the agreement was made in accordance with the relevant provisions, including whether the agreement was made with genuine agreement and if the necessary consultation processes were followed. Substantively, the court had to determine whether the agreement contained terms that were fair and reasonable, considering the interests of both the employer and the employees. The court also needed to consider whether the agreement met the "better off overall test," ensuring that the overall financial and non-financial benefits to the employees outweighed any detriments.

The Full Bench concluded that the Arrium Middleback Ranges Employees Enterprise Agreement 2016 satisfied the necessary statutory criteria. The court found that the agreement had been made with genuine agreement and that the requisite consultation processes were followed. In terms of the substantive requirements, the court determined that the agreement's terms were fair and reasonable, providing a balance between the interests of the employer and the employees. The court also found that the agreement met the "better off overall test," confirming that the overall benefits to the employees were sufficient to outweigh any potential detriments. Consequently, the Full Bench approved the agreement, thereby resolving the dispute in favour of the applicant.

The final orders included the approval of the Arrium Middleback Ranges Employees Enterprise Agreement 2016, effective from the date of the decision. The agreement was to be registered by the Fair Work Commission and would govern the employment terms and conditions of the employees covered by the agreement. The decision was communicated to the parties, and the agreement was to be implemented as per its terms.

OneSteel Manufacturing Pty Ltd (Administrator Appointed) T/A Arrium Mining

DECISION

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