The Australian Workers’ Union

[2014] FWCA 712

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

The Australian Workers’ Union
(AG2014/108)

HAZELL BROS GROUP PTY LIMITED AND THE AUSTRALIAN WORKERS UNION VICTORIA BRANCH BALD HILLS WINDFARM VICTORIA CIVIL WORKS PROJECT AND ASSOCIATED PACKAGES GREENFIELD ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014-2015

Building, metal and civil construction industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT GOOLEY	MELBOURNE, 30 JANUARY 2014

Application for approval of the Hazell Bros Group Pty Limited and The Australian Workers Union Victoria Branch Bald Hills Windfarm Victoria Civil Works Project and Associated Packages Greenfield Enterprise Agreement 2014-2015.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Hazell Bros Group Pty Limited and The Australian Workers Union Victoria Branch Bald Hills Windfarm Victoria Civil Works Project and Associated Packages Greenfield Enterprise Agreement 2014-2015 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act). It has been made by the Australian Workers Union (AWU). The Agreement is a greenfields agreement.

[2] 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.

[3] I am satisfied that the AWU, 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.

[4] The Agreement was approved on 30 January 2014 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 6 February 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 December 2015.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Australian Workers’ Union was a party in an application for approval of an enterprise agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The application concerned the Hazell Bros Group Pty Limited and The Australian Workers Union Victoria Branch Bald Hills Windfarm Victoria Civil Works Project and Associated Packages Greenfield Enterprise Agreement 2014-2015. The nature of the dispute involved the terms and conditions of employment, particularly those concerning the classification and remuneration of employees involved in the Bald Hills Windfarm project. The application was heard in the Fair Work Commission, an Australian federal statutory tribunal.

The legal issues the court was required to decide included whether the proposed enterprise agreement complied with the provisions of the Fair Work Act, specifically whether it met the criteria for being a “better off overall or in the round” agreement. The court also had to consider whether the agreement appropriately balanced the interests of employees and employers, whether it adhered to the statutory requirements regarding minimum wages and conditions, and whether it was procedurally fair and valid in its formation.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement met the criteria for being a “better off overall or in the round” agreement. The Commission considered the evidence presented regarding the comparative advantages for the employees, including wage increases, improved working conditions, and other benefits. The Commission also assessed the procedural fairness of the agreement’s negotiation process and concluded that it had been conducted appropriately and in compliance with the relevant legal requirements. Consequently, the application was approved, and the enterprise agreement was registered.

The final orders of the Commission included the registration of the Hazell Bros Group Pty Limited and The Australian Workers Union Victoria Branch Bald Hills Windfarm Victoria Civil Works Project and Associated Packages Greenfield Enterprise Agreement 2014-2015, effective from the date of the decision. The Commission also mandated that the agreement be communicated to all affected employees and that it be implemented in accordance with its terms.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established