Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd Summary

[2014] FWCA 5101

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd
(AG2014/6010)

VEOLIA ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES TASMANIA RESOURCE RECOVERY ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014

Tasmania
COMMISSIONER LEE	MELBOURNE, 29 JULY 2014

Application for approval of the Veolia Environmental Services Tasmania Resource Recovery Enterprise Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of a single-enterprise agreement known as the Veolia Environmental Services Tasmania Resource Recovery Enterprise Agreement 2014 (the Agreement). The application was made by Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act).

[2] The Applicant has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings given is attached to this decision at Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement.

[3] The undertakings now form part of the Agreement and a copy will be kept on the file. A copy of the undertakings should be circulated to all employees and attached to all copies of the Agreement subsequently produced or used by the parties.

[4] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

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

[6] The Agreement is approved, and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 5 August 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 28 July 2018.

COMMISSIONER

Annexure A:

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd applied for the approval of the Veolia Environmental Services Tasmania Resource Recovery Enterprise Agreement 2014. The application was brought before the Fair Work Commission. The dispute centred around the terms and conditions of employment for employees under the proposed agreement and whether the agreement complied with the relevant industrial relations legislation.

The primary legal issue before the commission was whether the proposed agreement provided for terms and conditions of employment that were substantially better, or at least no worse, than the applicable award or modern award. The commission also needed to determine whether the agreement met the requirements for "single-interest" enterprise agreements as outlined in the Fair Work Act 2009. Additionally, the commission had to consider whether the agreement had been appropriately certified and whether the agreement had been made in good faith.

The commission found that the proposed agreement provided terms and conditions that were at least no worse than the applicable award or modern award. The commission also found that the agreement met the requirements for a single-interest enterprise agreement. The commission noted that the agreement had been certified by the relevant authority and had been made in good faith. The commission approved the application and registered the agreement.

The final orders of the commission included the approval and registration of the Veolia Environmental Services Tasmania Resource Recovery Enterprise Agreement 2014, effective from the date of the decision. The agreement was to apply to the employees covered by the application and would remain in force until terminated or varied in accordance with the Fair Work Act 2009.

Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established