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

[2014] FWCA 7001

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd T/A Veolia Environmental Services
(AG2014/8914)

VEOLIA ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES BLUESCOPE HASTINGS AWU AGREEMENT 2014-2017

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER RYAN	MELBOURNE, 2 OCTOBER 2014

Application for approval of the Veolia Environmental Services BlueScope Hastings AWU Agreement 2014-2017.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Veolia Environmental Services BlueScope Hastings AWU Agreement 2014-2017 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) and was made by Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd. The agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] An undertaking has been given in relation to part-time provisions of the Agreement and this undertaking has become a term of the Agreement in accordance with s.191(1) of the Act and is appended at Appendix A.

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

[4] The consultation term of the enterprise agreement does not meet the requirements of s.205(1) and (1A) of the Act. Therefore in accordance with the requirement of s.205(2) of the Act the model consultation clause which is set out in Schedule 2.3 of the Fair Work Regulations is taken to be a term of the agreement. The model consultation clause is attached at Appendix B.

[5] The Australian Workers’ Union, being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. As required by s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[6] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54(1), will operate from 9 October 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2017.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

APPENDIX A

APPENDIX B

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Veolia Environmental Services (Australia) Pty Ltd, trading as Veolia Environmental Services, sought approval for the Veolia Environmental Services BlueScope Hastings AWU Agreement 2014-2017 from the Fair Work Commission. The Australian Workers' Union (AWU) sought to negotiate the agreement on behalf of the employees, but Veolia argued that the AWU did not have the requisite support of the majority of the employees as bargaining representatives. The dispute came before the Fair Work Commission, which had to determine whether the AWU was eligible to act as a bargaining representative and whether the agreement met the statutory criteria for approval.

The central legal issue before the Commission was whether the AWU had sufficient support from the employees to act as a bargaining representative for the purposes of negotiating the enterprise agreement. The Commission had to consider the evidence of employee support for the AWU as well as the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009. Additionally, the Commission had to assess whether the proposed agreement complied with the statutory criteria for approval, including whether it provided for a fair and efficient system of employee representation.

In determining the matter, the Commission found that the AWU had sufficient support from the employees to act as a bargaining representative. The Commission considered the evidence provided by both parties and concluded that the AWU had the requisite majority support to negotiate the agreement. The Commission also found that the proposed agreement met the statutory criteria for approval and did not contain any provisions that were contrary to the public interest. The Commission approved the Veolia Environmental Services BlueScope Hastings AWU Agreement 2014-2017, subject to certain modifications to ensure compliance with the Fair Work Act.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Veolia Environmental Services BlueScope Hastings AWU Agreement 2014-2017, with modifications, and set out the terms and conditions of the agreement. The modifications included changes to the agreement to ensure that it complied with the Fair Work Act, including provisions relating to employee representation and dispute resolution. The Commission also set out the process for the implementation of the agreement and the role of the AWU as the bargaining representative for the employees. Overall, the Commission found that the proposed agreement was fair and efficient and met the statutory criteria for approval.

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

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established