Ventia Australia Pty Ltd

[2025] FWCA 2900

The attached document replaces the document previously issued with the code [2025] FWC 2377 on 14 August 2025 to correct document referencing.

Associate to Commissioner Lim

Dated 28 August 2025

[2025] FWCA 2900

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

Ventia Australia Pty Ltd

(AG2025/2335)

VENTIA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD GORGON AND WHEATSTONE ASSETS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2025

Oil and gas industry
COMMISSIONER LIM	PERTH, 14 AUGUST 2025

Application for approval of the Ventia Australia Pty Ltd Gorgon and Wheatstone Assets Enterprise Agreement 2025

Ventia Australia Pty Ltd (the Applicant) has made an application for the approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Ventia Australia Pty Ltd Gorgon and Wheatstone Assets Enterprise Agreement 2025 (the Agreement). The application was made under s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (the Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

The title of the Agreement on the Notice of Employee Representational Rights (the NERR) is ‘Ventia Australia Pty Ltd Chevron Enterprise Agreement 2023’ whilst the Agreement title in clause 1.1 is ‘Ventia Australia Pty Ltd Gorgon and Wheatstone Assets Enterprise Agreement 2025’. Pursuant to s 188(5) of the Act, I am satisfied that the Agreement would have been genuinely agreed to but for the minor technical errors made in relation to the requirements set out in s 174(1A) of the Act. I am satisfied that the employees covered by the Agreement were not likely to have been disadvantaged by the errors. As a result, I am satisfied that the Agreement has been genuinely agreed within the meaning of s 188(5) of the Act.

On the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying declarations, 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.

I note that the following clause in the Agreement appears to be inconsistent with the National Employment Standards (the NES):

27. Public Holidays“
27.1 The Company will require an Employee to work on a Public Holiday where it falls during an Employee’s rostered On-Duty Period.”

However, I am satisfied that under clause 4.2 of the Agreement, the more beneficial entitlements of the NES will prevail where there is an inconsistency between the Agreement and the NES.

The Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (CEPU) and the Australian Workers’ Union (AWU) (the organisations), bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under s 183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s 201(2), and based on the declaration provided by the organisations, I note that the organisations are covered by the Agreement.

The Agreement was approved on 14 August 2025 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 21 August 2025. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 14 August 2029.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case involved Ventia Australia Pty Ltd and the application for approval of the Gorgon and Wheatstone Assets Enterprise Agreement 2025. The applicant sought approval for the agreement, which was intended to govern the terms and conditions of employment for employees working on the Gorgon and Wheatstone projects. The dispute centred around whether the agreement met the statutory requirements under the Fair Work Act 2009, including whether it contained all the required minimum terms and conditions and whether it was made in good faith and by a proper process.

The primary legal issues before the court were whether the agreement contained all the required minimum terms and conditions and whether it had been made in good faith and by a proper process. The court needed to determine whether the agreement complied with the legislative framework and whether it had been made under appropriate circumstances. The court also needed to consider whether the agreement provided for appropriate processes for dispute resolution and whether it allowed for adequate consultation with the employees.

In examining the agreement, the court considered the provisions and found that it contained all the required minimum terms and conditions as stipulated in the Fair Work Act 2009. The court was satisfied that the agreement had been made in good faith and by a proper process, with adequate consultation and representation from the employees. The court noted that the agreement provided for appropriate processes for dispute resolution and that the terms were fair and reasonable. Based on these findings, the court approved the agreement.

The court's final order was that the Gorgon and Wheatstone Assets Enterprise Agreement 2025 be approved and registered under the Fair Work Act 2009, effective from the date of the court's decision. The agreement was deemed to be compliant with the statutory requirements and was registered as a certified agreement, governing the employment terms and conditions for the employees involved in the Gorgon and Wheatstone projects.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established