Sedgman Employment Services Pty Ltd

[2022] FWCA 4472

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Sedgman Employment Services Pty Ltd

(AG2022/5161)

Sedgman Employment Services Pty Ltd Mount Pleasant Enterprise Agreement 2023

Coal industry
COMMISSIONER JOHNS	MELBOURNE, 16 DECEMBER 2022

Application for approval of the Sedgman Employment Services Pty Ltd Mount Pleasant Enterprise Agreement 2023

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Sedgman Employment Services Pty Ltd Mount Pleasant Enterprise Agreement 2023 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Sedgman Employment Services 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 23 December 2022. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 15 December 2026.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In this case, Sedgman Employment Services Pty Ltd applied to the Fair Work Commission for the approval of the Sedgman Employment Services Pty Ltd Mount Pleasant Enterprise Agreement 2023. The dispute arose from the negotiation and subsequent approval process of the enterprise agreement between the employer and the employees represented by the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU). The Commission was tasked with determining whether the agreement met the necessary requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The primary legal issue before the Commission was whether the agreement complied with the procedural and substantive requirements set out in the Act. This included whether the agreement was genuinely negotiated, whether it contained the minimum terms and conditions prescribed by the Act, and whether it was free from any illegality or unfairness. Additionally, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and whether it promoted harmonious, productive, and cooperative workplace relations.

The Commission found that the agreement was genuinely negotiated and contained all the minimum terms and conditions required by the Act. The agreement was considered to be free from any illegality or unfairness and was in the best interests of the employees. Furthermore, the Commission was satisfied that the agreement promoted harmonious, productive, and cooperative workplace relations. Consequently, the Commission approved the agreement, stating that it met all the necessary requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The Commission's final order was the approval of the Sedgman Employment Services Pty Ltd Mount Pleasant Enterprise Agreement 2023, effective from 1 April 2023. The agreement will now apply to the employees covered by the agreement, providing them with the terms and conditions of employment as outlined in the approved agreement.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established