DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Veolia Water Operations Pty Limited t/a Veolia Water Operations Pty Limited
(AG2020/1990)

VEOLIA WATER OPERATIONS PTY LTD - FAIRFIELD RECYCLED WATER PLANT ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2020 - 2022

Water, sewerage and drainage services
DEPUTY PRESIDENT BOYCE	SYDNEY, 19 AUGUST 2020

Application for approval of the Veolia Water Operations Pty Ltd - Fairfield Recycled Water Plant Enterprise Agreement 2020 - 2022.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement to be known as the Veolia Water Operations Pty Ltd - Fairfield Recycled Water Plant Enterprise Agreement 2020 - 2022 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act). It has been made by Veolia Water Operations Pty Limited (Employer). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Employer has provided written undertakings dated 17 August 2020. Those undertakings are attached at Annexure A to this decision and become terms of the Agreement. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement (as compared to the relevant provisions of the Water Industry Award 2020), and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to 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 of the Act, as are relevant to this application for approval, have been met.

[4] I am satisfied the more beneficial entitlements of the NES will prevail where there is an inconsistency between the Agreement and the NES.

[5] The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU), being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, 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 this organisation.

[6] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 26 August 2020. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 December 2022.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Veolia Water Operations Pty Limited, trading as Veolia Water Operations, applied to the Fair Work Commission for the approval of the Veolia Water Operations Pty Ltd - Fairfield Recycled Water Plant Enterprise Agreement 2020 - 2022. The applicant is an employer in the water industry, and the agreement in question concerns the terms and conditions of employment for certain employees at its Fairfield Recycled Water Plant. The dispute centred on whether the proposed agreement met the legal requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The court had to determine if the enterprise agreement satisfied the provisions of the Act, particularly whether it provided for a fair and reasonable terms of employment and if it was certified by the Australian Building and Construction Commission as meeting the ‘better-off overall test’. The court also had to consider whether the agreement was made in good faith and whether it included a mechanism for the resolution of disputes between the employer and the employees.

In reaching its decision, the court found that the agreement did meet the legal requirements for approval. The court noted that the agreement contained provisions for fair and reasonable terms of employment, and it had been certified as meeting the better-off overall test. The court was also satisfied that the agreement had been made in good faith and included a mechanism for the resolution of disputes. The court concluded that the agreement was fair and reasonable and approved it under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The final orders of the court were that the Veolia Water Operations Pty Ltd - Fairfield Recycled Water Plant Enterprise Agreement 2020 - 2022 be approved, effective from the date of the decision. The court also ordered that the agreement be registered with the Fair Work Commission and that a copy be provided to both the employer and the employees.

Veolia Water Operations Pty Limited t/a Veolia Water Operations Pty Limited

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established