The Australian Workers’ Union Summary

[2013] FWCA 4965

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

The Australian Workers’ Union
(AG2013/7537)

GREATER GEELONG CONSTRUCTIONS PTY LTD ALTONA AREA ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2013-2014

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT GOOLEY	MELBOURNE, 23 JULY 2013

Application for approval of the Greater Geelong Constructions Pty Ltd Altona Area Enterprise Agreement 2013-2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Greater Geelong Constructions Pty Ltd Altona Area Enterprise Agreement 2013-2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by the Australian Workers’ Union (the AWU). The agreement is a greenfields agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186 and 187 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] The AWU, 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.

[4] The Agreement was approved on 23 July 2013 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 30 July 2013. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2014.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Australian Workers’ Union applied to the Fair Work Commission for the approval of the Greater Geelong Constructions Pty Ltd Altona Area Enterprise Agreement 2013-2014. The application was opposed by the employer, who argued that the agreement did not meet the requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute centred around whether the agreement contained all the terms required by law, and whether it had been fairly negotiated.

The court had to determine whether the agreement met the criteria for approval as set out in the Fair Work Act. This included examining whether the agreement contained all the mandated terms, such as minimum rates of pay, penalties for contraventions, and provisions for variations and termination. The court also had to consider whether the agreement had been negotiated in good faith and whether it provided for a fair and efficient workplace.

In delivering its decision, the commission found that the agreement contained all the required terms and had been negotiated in good faith. The commission noted that the agreement provided for a fair and efficient workplace, and that the parties had made a genuine effort to reach an agreement. The commission approved the agreement, finding that it met the requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act.

The court ordered that the Greater Geelong Constructions Pty Ltd Altona Area Enterprise Agreement 2013-2014 be approved and registered with the Fair Work Commission. The agreement was to take effect from the date of the decision and would remain in force until it was superseded by a new agreement or expired under its own terms.

The Australian Workers’ Union

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established