DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Roadrunner Engineering P/L
(AG2018/1036)

ROADRUNNER ENGINEERING AND AMWU METAL ENGINEERING ON-SITE CONSTRUCTION AGREEMENT 2017 - 2020

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER CIRKOVIC	MELBOURNE, 18 MAY 2018

Application for approval of the Roadrunner Engineering and AMWU Metal Engineering On-Site Construction Agreement 2017 - 2020.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Roadrunner Engineering and AMWU Metal Engineering On-Site Construction Agreement 2017 - 2020 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Roadrunner Engineering P/L. 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.205(2) of the Act, the model consultation term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[4] The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) 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 was approved on 18 May 2018 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 25 May 2018. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2020.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Roadrunner Engineering P/L recently brought an application before the Fair Work Commission to have the Roadrunner Engineering and AMWU Metal Engineering On-Site Construction Agreement 2017-2020 approved as a registered agreement. The Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union was a party to the agreement, along with Roadrunner Engineering P/L. The nature of the dispute was whether the agreement complied with the Fair Work Act 2009 and could be approved as a registered agreement.

The central legal issue before the Commission was whether the agreement complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act, particularly the provisions relating to genuine agreement and the process for registration. This included whether the agreement was made in good faith and whether it contained all the required terms and conditions. The Commission also had to consider whether the agreement had been made through a genuine process of negotiation and whether it provided for a proper balance of rights and obligations between the parties.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement was made in good faith and through a genuine process of negotiation. The Commission noted that the agreement contained all the required terms and conditions and provided for a proper balance of rights and obligations between the parties. The Commission also found that the agreement complied with the provisions of the Fair Work Act relating to registration. As a result, the Commission approved the agreement as a registered agreement.

The Commission's decision provides useful guidance for employers and unions entering into enterprise agreements. It confirms that the Commission will carefully consider whether an agreement complies with the requirements of the Fair Work Act before approving it as a registered agreement. Employers and unions should ensure that their agreements are made in good faith, through a genuine process of negotiation, and contain all the required terms and conditions. They should also ensure that their agreements provide for a proper balance of rights and obligations between the parties. The Commission's decision in this case provides a useful example of what a compliant enterprise agreement looks like.

Roadrunner Engineering P/L

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established