DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

The Trustee for the Ousley Family Trust T/A Alternate Green Electrical Services Pty Ltd
(AG2020/1117)

ALTERNATE GREEN ELECTRICAL SERVICES PTY LTD ETU / AMWU / CONSTRUCTION & SERVICE EMPLOYEES ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2019-2022

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER YILMAZ	MELBOURNE, 14 MAY 2020

Application for approval of the Alternate Green Electrical Services Pty Ltd ETU / AMWU / Construction & Service Employees Enterprise Agreement 2019-2022.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Alternate Green Electrical Services Pty Ltd ETU / AMWU / Construction & Service Employees Enterprise Agreement 2019-2022 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by The Trustee for the Ousley Family Trust T/A Alternate Green Electrical Services Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Employer has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[3] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 are relevant to this application for approval and have been met. The Agreement does not cover all of the employees of the employer, however, taking into account the factors in ss.186(3) and (3A) I am satisfied that the group of employees was fairly chosen.

[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] The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) and the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under s.183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. In accordance with s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisations.

[6] The Agreement is approved and in accordance with s.54, will operate from 21 May 2020. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 March 2022.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the court involved an application for the approval of the Alternate Green Electrical Services Pty Ltd ETU / AMWU / Construction & Service Employees Enterprise Agreement 2019-2022. The applicant, the Trustee for the Ousley Family Trust, sought to have the enterprise agreement approved under the Fair Work Act 2009. The legal dispute centred on whether the agreement met the criteria for approval as a "single interest employer agreement" and if it complied with the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act.

The court was required to determine whether the enterprise agreement was genuinely a single interest employer agreement, which is an agreement that applies to a single employer's employees and is not part of an industry-wide or multi-employer agreement. Additionally, the court needed to assess if the agreement complied with the requirements for approval, including whether it provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions, and if it had been negotiated in good faith. The court also had to consider whether the agreement met the "better off overall test," which ensures that employees are not worse off by being covered by the agreement than they would be under the relevant award or registered agreement.

The court concluded that the enterprise agreement met the criteria for approval as a single interest employer agreement. The agreement applied solely to the employees of Alternate Green Electrical Services Pty Ltd and was not part of any broader agreement. The court found that the agreement provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions and had been negotiated in good faith. Moreover, the court determined that the agreement passed the better off overall test, as it offered employees terms and conditions that were at least as good as those provided by the relevant award. Consequently, the court approved the Alternate Green Electrical Services Pty Ltd ETU / AMWU / Construction & Service Employees Enterprise Agreement 2019-2022.

The court ordered that the enterprise agreement be approved and registered under the Fair Work Act 2009. The agreement would apply to the employees of Alternate Green Electrical Services Pty Ltd from the date of the approval, and the relevant provisions would govern the terms and conditions of employment for those employees. The approval of the agreement ensures that the employees are covered by a legally binding agreement that provides for their fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment.

The Trustee for the Ousley Family Trust T/A Alternate Green Electrical Services Pty Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established