Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd

[2025] FWCA 890

[2025] FWCA 890

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd

(AG2025/431)

VEOLIA ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD ILLAWARRA INDUSTRIAL AGREEMENT 2025

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 27 MARCH 2025

Application for approval of the Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd Illawarra Industrial Agreement 2025

1. Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd (Veolia) has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd Illawarra Industrial Agreement 2025 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

1. The Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union (CFMEU), a bargaining representative for the Agreement, lodged a F18 declaration advising the Commission that it supported approval of the Agreement but that it had two concerns about whether the Agreement passed the ‘better off overall test’ (BOOT). First, the CFMEU noted that the definition of a ‘rostered shift’ in the Agreement differed to that in the Manufacturing and Associated Industries Award 2020 (Award) in various respects, and that this would produce various consequential detriments to employees as against the Award. Secondly, the CFMEU said that clause 19B of the Agreement, which concerns rest periods after overtime, was less beneficial to employees than relevant provisions in the Award. The CFMEU proposed that Veolia offer undertakings to address these matters. It did not seek to be heard in relation to whether the Agreement passed the BOOT.

1. I have considered the matters raised by the CFMEU in light of further information provided by Veolia, including as to its current rostering arrangements and changes that might realistically be made to those arrangements. In my assessment, based on current patterns of work and patterns that are reasonably foreseeable in the enterprise, the consequences of the Agreement’s different definition of ‘rostered shift’ are highly unlikely to see employees incur a detriment as against the Award. As to the second issue raised by the union, I do not consider that the Agreement’s arrangements for rest periods present a BOOT concern, given the margin by which the wage rates in the Agreement exceed their Award counterparts.

1. I also raised with Veolia the absence in the Agreement of the higher Award penalty for non-consecutive shifts and the possibility that this might present a BOOT concern for certain classifications of employees. However, based on information provided by Veolia, I am satisfied that a detriment could only arise in the event of highly unlikely roster patterns.

1. In my opinion, the terms of the Agreement that are more beneficial to employees than those in the Award, including higher salaries, outweigh the terms that are less beneficial than the Award, including those referred to above. I am satisfied that each award covered employee and each reasonably foreseeable employee will be better off overall under the Agreement, and that the Agreement passes the BOOT. I reach this conclusion having undertaken the global assessment required by s 193A(2).

1. I am satisfied that the requirements of ss 186, 187 and 188 have been met.

1. The Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU), the Australian Workers’ Union (AWU) and the CFMEU, being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under s 183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. As required by s 201(2), I note that the Agreement covers the AMWU, the AWU and the CFMEU.

1. The Agreement was approved on 27 March 2025.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT
Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

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