Tronox Management Pty Ltd T/A Tronox

[2014] FWCA 2033

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Tronox Management Pty Ltd T/A Tronox
(AG2014/308)

TRONOX ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014

Mining industry
COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS	PERTH, 27 MARCH 2014

Application for approval of the Tronox Enterprise Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Tronox Enterprise Agreement 2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Tronox Management Pty Ltd T/A Tronox. The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] The Agreement does not contain a consultation term. Pursuant to s.205(2) of the Act, the model consultation term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 1 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[4] The Agreement is to be read together with the undertaking given by the employer in Schedule A attached. The undertaking is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[5] The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU), 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) of the Act I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[6] The Australian Workers’ Union, 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) of the Act I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[7] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 3 April 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 27 March 2018.

COMMISSIONER

SCHEDULE A

1 Section 2.09 and Schedule 2.2 of the Fair Work Regulations 2009.

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Fair Work Commission, the applicant, Tronox Management Pty Ltd, trading as Tronox, applied for an approval of the Tronox Enterprise Agreement 2014. The application was contested by the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union, which represented the employees. The dispute centred around whether the agreement complied with the relevant legislative provisions, specifically concerning the terms and conditions of employment for the workforce.

The primary legal issues the Commission needed to address were whether the agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009, including whether it contained the necessary minimum entitlements and whether it was free from prohibited content. Additionally, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement had been made in accordance with the procedural requirements set out in the Act, including whether proper consultation had occurred with the relevant employee representatives.

The Commission found that the agreement satisfied the necessary legal criteria. It included all the mandated minimum entitlements, and there was no prohibited content. Furthermore, the agreement was deemed to have been made following the proper procedural steps, with sufficient consultation evident. The Commission concluded that the application should be approved, as the agreement met all legal standards and was fairly negotiated.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Tronox Enterprise Agreement 2014, setting out the terms and conditions of employment for the employees covered by the agreement. This approval ensures that the agreement remains in effect, governing the relationship between the employer and the employees.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established