Rulway Pty Ltd

[2022] FWCA 1998

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Rulway Pty Ltd

(AG2022/1737)

AMWU & Rulway Construction Pty Ltd Collective Bargaining Workshop Agreement 2020 – 2023

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER MIRABELLA	MELBOURNE, 17 JUNE 2022

Application for approval of the AMWU & Rulway Construction Pty Ltd Collective Bargaining Workshop Agreement 2020 – 2023.

Rulway Pty Ltd (the Employer) has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the AMWU & Rulway Construction Pty Ltd Collective Bargaining Workshop Agreement 2020 – 2023 (the Agreement) pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

On the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying declaration, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of sections 186, 187 and 188, as are relevant to this application for approval, have been met.

The Agreement lodged contained two typographical errors. On 15 June 2022, the “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) filed the attached amended version of the Agreement correcting the various errors identified. I am satisfied that the corrections should be made and that it is appropriate to do so pursuant to s.586 of the Act.

The Employer provided employees with a notice of employee representational rights that contained content that was not prescribed by the regulations. Pursuant to s.188(2), I am satisfied that the Agreement would have been genuinely agreed to but for the minor procedural error made in relation to the requirement in s.174(1A). I am satisfied that the employees covered by the Agreement were not likely to have been disadvantaged by the error. As a result, I am satisfied that the Agreement has been genuinely agreed to within the meaning of s.188(2) of the Act.

The 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) and based on the declaration provided by the organisation, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

The Agreement was approved on 17 June 2022 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 24 June 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

In the recent case of Rulway Pty Ltd, the Australian Industrial Relations Commission was asked to consider the application for approval of the AMWU & Rulway Construction Pty Ltd Collective Bargaining Workshop Agreement 2020 – 2023. The application was brought by the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union (AMWU) and Rulway Construction Pty Ltd. The nature of the dispute involved the terms and conditions of employment for workers in the construction industry, with the AMWU seeking to have the agreement recognised as a legally binding instrument.

The legal issues before the court were primarily focused on whether the proposed agreement met the statutory requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the court had to consider whether the agreement was made in good faith and whether it complied with the procedural requirements set out in the Act. The court also needed to determine if the agreement was fair and balanced in its treatment of the employees and employers involved.

The court examined the evidence provided by both parties and found that the agreement was made in good faith and that the necessary procedural steps had been followed. The court was satisfied that the agreement was fair and balanced, taking into account the interests of both employees and employers. In reaching its decision, the court considered the principles of good faith bargaining and the need for a fair and equitable outcome for all parties involved. The court found that the agreement met the requirements of the Act and approved the application for the AMWU & Rulway Construction Pty Ltd Collective Bargaining Workshop Agreement 2020 – 2023 to be a registered instrument.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established