The Australian Workers’ Union Summary

[2013] FWCA 4069

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

The Australian Workers’ Union
(AG2013/1399)

ALLIANCE SCAFFOLDING PTY LTD (ALTONA AREA) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2013-2014

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT GOOLEY	MELBOURNE, 24 JUNE 2013

Application for approval of the Alliance Scaffolding Pty Ltd (Altona Area) Enterprise Agreement 2013-2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Alliance Scaffolding Pty Ltd (Altona Area) Enterprise Agreement 2013-2014 (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. 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] An undertaking has been provided 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.

[4] The application was not lodged within 14 days after the agreement was made. Pursuant to s.185(3)(b), in all the circumstances I consider it fair to extend the time for making the application to the date it was actually made.

[5] I am satisfied that the Australian Workers’ Union, 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.

[6] The Agreement was approved on 24 June 2013 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 1 July 2013. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2014.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

APPENDIX A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Australian Workers’ Union filed an application for the approval of the Alliance Scaffolding Pty Ltd (Altona Area) Enterprise Agreement 2013-2014 in the Fair Work Commission. The dispute centred on whether the agreement met the necessary criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009, particularly in relation to the requirements for enterprise agreements to provide for the terms and conditions of employment for the employees covered by the agreement. The application was brought forward by the union, which sought to ensure the agreement was fair and beneficial for the employees within the specified scope.

The primary legal issues before the Commission were whether the agreement contained all the mandated terms and conditions for the employees, if the agreement had been genuinely bargained between the parties, and whether the agreement complied with the procedural requirements outlined in the Fair Work Act. Additionally, the Commission had to consider if the agreement met the genuine agreement test, which includes ensuring the agreement was not made under duress or coercion.

In determining the application, the Commission examined the contents of the agreement and the processes followed in its creation. It found that the agreement did indeed include all the necessary terms and conditions for the employees, and that it had been genuinely negotiated between the parties. The Commission concluded that the agreement satisfied the genuine agreement test and complied with the procedural requirements under the Fair Work Act. As a result, the Commission approved the Alliance Scaffolding Pty Ltd (Altona Area) Enterprise Agreement 2013-2014.

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