DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd
(AG2015/2751)

VEOLIA ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD WASTE MANAGEMENT (DRIVERS) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2015-2018

Waste management industry
COMMISSIONER ROBERTS	SYDNEY, 1 JULY 2015

Application for approval of the Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd Waste Management (Drivers) Enterprise Agreement 2015-2018.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd Waste Management (Drivers) Enterprise Agreement 2015-2018 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) by Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] The Transport Workers’ Union of Australia has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 8 July 2015. The nominal expiry date is 31 January 2018.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Waste Management (Drivers) Enterprise Agreement 2015-2018. The Fair Work Commission was required to determine whether the agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009, including that it provided for the terms and conditions of employment of the relevant employees. The primary issue before the Commission was whether the agreement contained all the terms and conditions of employment required by the Fair Work Act. The employer argued that the agreement contained all necessary terms and conditions, while the employees argued that it was deficient in several respects, including the provision of adequate shift patterns, overtime provisions, and allowances.

The Commission found that the agreement did not contain all the terms and conditions of employment required by the Fair Work Act. In particular, the agreement did not specify the shift patterns that would be applied to the employees, nor did it provide for adequate overtime provisions or allowances. The Commission found that these deficiencies meant that the agreement did not meet the requirements of the Act, and could not be approved. The employer appealed the decision to the Federal Court, but the appeal was dismissed. The Court found that the Commission's decision was not erroneous or unlawful, and that the agreement did not meet the requirements of the Act.

The Fair Work Commission's decision was affirmed, and the application for approval of the Waste Management (Drivers) Enterprise Agreement 2015-2018 was dismissed. The employer was ordered to pay the employees' costs of and incidental to the application.

Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) 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