Southern Cross Electrical Engineering Limited

[2018] FWCA 1752

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

decision

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Southern Cross Electrical Engineering Limited

(AG2017/6512)

Southern Cross Electrical Engineering Limited and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2015-2018

Electrical contracting industry
Commissioner Johns	CANBERRA, 23 MARCH 2018

Application for approval of the Southern Cross Electrical Engineering Limited and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2015-2018.

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Southern Cross Electrical Engineering Limited and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2015-2018 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act). It has been made by Southern Cross Electrical Engineering Limited. The Agreement is a greenfields agreement.

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

An undertaking has been given in relation to clauses 3.3.13 and 6.4 of the Agreement and this undertaking has become a term of the Agreement in accordance with s.191(2) of the Act and is appended at Appendix A.

Based on statutory declaration provided by the organisation, I am satisfied that the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia, the employee organisation to be covered by the agreement, is entitled to represent the industrial interests of a majority of employees who will be covered by the Agreement in relation to work that is to be performed under it. I am also satisfied that it is in the public interest to approve the Agreement.

The Agreement was approved on 23 March 2018 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 30 March 2018. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 December 2018.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Appendix A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Southern Cross Electrical Engineering Limited applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Southern Cross Electrical Engineering Limited and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2015-2018. The parties involved in the dispute were Southern Cross Electrical Engineering Limited and the Electrical Trades Union of Australia, which represents the employees of the company. The dispute centred around whether the proposed enterprise agreement met the necessary standards for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The legal issues that the court had to address were whether the agreement complied with the provisions of the Fair Work Act, particularly in terms of the "better off overall test" and whether the agreement contained any terms that were contrary to the public interest. The court had to determine if the proposed agreement provided employees with a fair and reasonable outcome, considering factors such as wages, conditions, and the overall balance of benefits.

The Fair Work Commission found that the proposed enterprise agreement met the necessary standards for approval. The agreement provided for appropriate wage increases and improved conditions for the employees, meeting the better off overall test. The court also determined that there were no terms in the agreement that were contrary to the public interest. Consequently, the court approved the agreement, allowing it to take effect from the specified date.

The final orders of the court were that the Southern Cross Electrical Engineering Limited and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Enterprise Agreement 2015-2018 be approved and registered under the Fair Work Act 2009. This decision ensured that the employees would benefit from the improved terms and conditions outlined in the agreement, while also maintaining a fair and reasonable balance between the parties involved.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established