UGL Rail Services Pty Limited Summary

[2025] FWCA 1434

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

UGL Rail Services Pty Limited

(AG2025/1198)

UGL RAIL SERVICES PTY LIMITED AND CEPU ELECTRICAL DIVISION QUEENSLAND CROSS RIVER RAIL PROJECT ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2025-2027

Electrical contracting industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 1 MAY 2025

Application for approval of the UGL Rail Services Pty Limited and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Cross River Rail Project Enterprise Agreement 2025-2027

UGL Rail Services Pty Limited has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the UGL Rail Services Pty Limited and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Cross River Rail Project Enterprise Agreement 2025-2027 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

On the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying declaration, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss 186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval has been met.

The Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (CEPU), being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s 183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. As required by s 201(2), I note that the Agreement covers the CEPU.

The Agreement was approved on 1 May 2025.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT
Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the Fair Work Commission involved an application by UGL Rail Services Pty Limited for approval of the UGL Rail Services Pty Limited and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Cross River Rail Project Enterprise Agreement 2025-2027. The dispute centred on the terms and conditions outlined in the proposed enterprise agreement and whether these terms were fair and reasonable under the Fair Work Act 2009. The Commission was tasked with evaluating the fairness of the agreement and deciding whether it met the criteria for approval.

The central legal issues before the Commission were whether the proposed terms of the enterprise agreement were procedurally and substantively fair. Procedural fairness required the Commission to consider whether the bargaining process leading to the agreement was fair and whether the agreement was genuinely negotiated. Substantive fairness involved an assessment of whether the terms and conditions of the agreement were fair and reasonable, taking into account the principles of the Fair Work Act, including those relating to minimum entitlements, workplace relations, and the broader economic context.

The Commission found that the enterprise agreement was procedurally fair as it had been genuinely negotiated between the parties, with both sides participating in good faith. The substantive fairness assessment focused on the balance of the terms and conditions in the context of the industry and the economic environment. The Commission considered factors such as the impact on employees' wages and conditions, the flexibility of the agreement, and its alignment with the principles of the Fair Work Act. Ultimately, the Commission was satisfied that the terms of the agreement were fair and reasonable, and therefore approved the UGL Rail Services Pty Limited and CEPU Electrical Division Queensland Cross River Rail Project Enterprise Agreement 2025-2027.

UGL Rail Services Pty Limited

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established