DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd T/A Veolia Environmental Services
(AG2021/5544)

VEOLIA ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD -PORT KEMBLA WASTE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2021

Waste management industry
COMMISSIONER JOHNS	SYDNEY, 28 JUNE 2021

Application for approval of the Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd - Port Kembla Waste Enterprise Agreement 2021.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd - Port Kembla Waste Enterprise Agreement 2021 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd T/A Veolia Environmental Services. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Employer has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in 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. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the agreement.

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

[4] The Transport Workers’ Union of Australia being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, 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.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 5 July 2021. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 27 June 2024.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case before the Fair Work Commission involved Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd, trading as Veolia Environmental Services, and the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union. The dispute centred on the approval of the Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd - Port Kembla Waste Enterprise Agreement 2021. The application for the agreement’s approval was heard in the Fair Work Commission, which had to determine whether the agreement met the legal requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The legal issues that the Commission had to address were whether the agreement had been made in good faith, whether it included provisions for genuine bargaining, and whether the agreement contained the minimum terms and conditions as prescribed by the Act. Additionally, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement had been properly certified by an independent person and whether the application for its approval was made within the requisite time frame.

The Commission found that the agreement had been made in good faith, that there had been genuine bargaining between the parties, and that it contained the minimum terms and conditions required by the Act. The agreement was also found to have been certified by an independent person. The Commission noted that the application for approval was made within the time frame stipulated by the Act. Having considered all the evidence and arguments presented, the Commission was satisfied that the agreement met the legal requirements for approval and granted the application.

In granting the application, the Commission approved the Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd - Port Kembla Waste Enterprise Agreement 2021 as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The agreement will now provide the terms and conditions of employment for the employees covered by the agreement, reflecting the outcomes of the bargaining process between the employer and the union.

Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd T/A Veolia Environmental Services

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established