Rigger Contracting Pty Ltd

[2021] FWCA 6886

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Rigger Contracting Pty Ltd
(AG2021/8434)

RIGGER CONTRACTING PTY LTD AND THE CFMEU (VICTORIAN CONSTRUCTION AND GENERAL DIVISION) SUBCONTRACTORS CARPENTRY AND JOINERY ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2020-2023

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER JOHNS	SYDNEY, 29 NOVEMBER 2021

Application for approval of the Rigger Contracting Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Carpentry and Joinery Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Rigger Contracting Pty Ltd and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Carpentry and Joinery 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 Rigger Contracting Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] 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.

[3] Pursuant to s.202(4) of the Act, the model flexibility term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[4] The Construction, Forestry, Maritime, 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.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 6 December 2021. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2023.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the case of Rigger Contracting Pty Ltd, the applicants sought approval of the Enterprise Agreement between themselves and the CFMEU (Victorian Construction and General Division) Subcontractors Carpentry and Joinery Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023. The application was heard by the Fair Work Commission. The primary dispute involved the procedural fairness and the substantive fairness of the agreement, as well as its compliance with relevant industrial laws.

The legal issues before the Commission encompassed whether the agreement was made in compliance with procedural fairness, whether the agreement was substantively fair, and whether the agreement adhered to the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009. The applicants argued that the agreement was negotiated in good faith and reflected a fair and reasonable outcome for both parties. The respondents, however, contended that the process leading to the agreement was unfair and that the terms were not equitable.

The Commission found that the agreement was negotiated in good faith and that the process was procedurally fair. It also determined that the agreement was substantively fair, taking into account the specific circumstances of the industry and the parties involved. The Commission concluded that the agreement complied with the Fair Work Act 2009 and was therefore eligible for approval. The agreement was subsequently approved by the Commission, and it will now govern the terms and conditions of employment for the relevant period.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established