FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

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

Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union
(AG2015/1994)

PROOF TECH SOLUTIONS PTY LTD AND THE CFMEU BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2011-2015

Building, metal and civil construction industries
SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT WATSON	MELBOURNE, 2 MARCH 2015

Application for the approval of the Proof Tech Solutions Pty Ltd and the CFMEU Building and Construction Industry Enterprise Agreement 2011-2015.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Proof Tech Solutions Pty Ltd and the CFMEU Building and Construction Industry Enterprise Agreement 2011-2015 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

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

[3] The CFMEU 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.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 9 March 2015. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 March 2015.

SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Ridgetech Roofing Pty Ltd recently applied to the Fair Work Commission to approve the Proof Tech Solutions Pty Ltd and the CFMEU Building and Construction Industry Enterprise Agreement 2011-2015. The application was made under section 234 of the Fair Work Act 2009, seeking to extend the agreement's coverage to include Ridgetech. The dispute centred around whether the agreement, which was not initially intended to cover Ridgetech, could be extended to include it without the need for direct bargaining with the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU).

The legal issues before the Commission involved the interpretation of section 234 of the Fair Work Act and whether the application met the requirements for extending the coverage of an existing enterprise agreement. Specifically, the Commission had to determine if the agreement could be extended to cover Ridgetech without direct bargaining and whether the application satisfied the criteria under the Act. The central question was whether the application process adhered to the legal framework governing the approval of enterprise agreements in Australia.

In delivering the decision, the Commission considered the statutory provisions and relevant precedents. The Commission found that the application met the requirements set out in the Fair Work Act, and the extension of the agreement to Ridgetech was in compliance with the statutory framework. The Commission noted that the application was made in good faith and that the extension would not result in any unfair outcomes for the parties involved. Consequently, the Commission approved the extension of the enterprise agreement to include Ridgetech Roofing Pty Ltd, thereby resolving the dispute in favour of the applicant.

Ridgetech Roofing Pty Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established