PFS Group (VIC) Pty Ltd

[2022] FWCA 1477

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

PFS Group (VIC) Pty Ltd

(AG2022/1165)

PFS Group (Vic) Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Caulking and Sealing Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER JOHNS	MELBOURNE, 2 MAY 2022

Application for approval of the PFS Group (Vic) Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Caulking and Sealing Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the PFS Group (Vic) Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Caulking and Sealing Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by PFS Group (VIC) Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

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

The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.
The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 9 May 2022. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2023.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the Fair Work Commission involved an application by PFS Group (Vic) Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors to have their Enterprise Agreement, covering the period from 2020 to 2023, approved. The primary dispute centred on whether the agreement met the necessary statutory requirements and the balance of interests between the parties. The court was tasked with determining the validity of the agreement, its compliance with the Fair Work Act 2009, and whether it met the requirements for good faith bargaining and procedural fairness.

The legal issues that the court needed to address included whether the agreement was made in good faith, if there was procedural fairness in the bargaining process, and whether the agreement met the statutory criteria for approval. The court had to consider whether the agreement contained the necessary minimum terms and conditions as required by the Fair Work Act, and whether it provided a fair and reasonable outcome for all parties involved.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement was made in good faith and that there was procedural fairness in the bargaining process. The court determined that the agreement contained all the necessary minimum terms and conditions, and that it provided a fair and reasonable outcome for both the employer and the employees. The agreement was approved by the Commission, which found that it met all the statutory requirements for approval and provided a balanced outcome that was in the best interests of both parties.

The final orders of the court were that the PFS Group (Vic) Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Caulking and Sealing Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023 be approved as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The agreement was to be registered with the Fair Work Commission, and would be in effect from the date of the decision until the end of the agreement period, which was 2023.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established