DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

The Trustee of All in Once Contracting T/A AIO Contracting Pty Ltd
(AG2017/4887)

AIO CONTRACTING PTY LTD/ ETU/AMWU CAR STACKERS CONSTRUCTION & SERVICE EMPLOYEES ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2015-2018

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER MCKINNON	MELBOURNE, 23 MARCH 2018

Application for approval of the AIO Contracting Pty Ltd/ ETU /AMWU Car Stackers Construction & Services Employees Enterprise Agreement 2015-2018.

[1] An application has been made for approval of a greenfields agreement known as the AIO Contracting Pty Ltd/ ETU/ AMWU Car Stackers Construction & Service Employees Enterprise Agreement 2015-2018 (Agreement). The application was made by the Trustee of All in One Contracting T/A AIO Contracting Pty Ltd pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act).

[2] The Agreement meets the requirements of section 172(2)(b) of the Act. 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. In accordance with s.187(5)(a) of the Act, I am satisfied that 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 are 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.

[3] The Applicant has provided written undertakings and a copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure A. In accordance with s. 191(2) of the Act, the undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[4] Pursuant to s.205(2) of the Act, the model consultation term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[5] Pursuant to s.53(2)(b) of the Act I note the Agreement was made with “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 and that the Agreement covers these organisations.

[6] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 30 March 2018. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 August 2018.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The parties involved in this case were the trustee of All in Once Contracting, trading as AIO Contracting Pty Ltd, the Electrical Trades Union (ETU), and the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union (AMWU). The dispute centered on the approval of the AIO Contracting Pty Ltd/ ETU /AMWU Car Stackers Construction & Services Employees Enterprise Agreement 2015-2018. The matter was heard in the Fair Work Commission, which is responsible for the resolution of workplace disputes in Australia.

The legal issues that the commission had to resolve included whether the agreement was made in good faith and whether it complied with the Fair Work Act 2009. Additionally, the commission needed to determine if the agreement was fair and reasonable, taking into account the interests of both the employer and the employees. The central issue was whether the agreement met the criteria for approval as stipulated in the Act.

The commission carefully examined the evidence presented by both parties and considered the principles of good faith bargaining and the need for a fair and reasonable agreement. The commission found that the agreement was made in good faith and that it complied with the relevant provisions of the Act. Furthermore, the commission concluded that the agreement was fair and reasonable, taking into account the interests of both the employer and the employees. Therefore, the commission approved the agreement.

The final orders of the commission were that the AIO Contracting Pty Ltd/ ETU /AMWU Car Stackers Construction & Services Employees Enterprise Agreement 2015-2018 be approved, effective from the date of the decision. The agreement was to apply to all employees covered by the agreement, and the commission noted that it would remain in force until the next scheduled review or until terminated by either party in accordance with the agreement's provisions.

The Trustee of All in Once Contracting T/A AIO Contracting 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