Waco Kwikform Pty Ltd Summary

[2014] FWCA 1097

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Waco Kwikform Pty Ltd
(AG2014/3554)

WACO KWIKFORM LTD CERTIFIED AGREEMENT FOR YALLOURN POWER STATION AND OPENCUT MINE VICTORIA, 2012

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER RYAN	MELBOURNE, 13 FEBRUARY 2014

Application for approval of the Waco Kwikform Ltd Certified Agreement for Yallourn Power Station and Opencut Mine Victoria, 2012.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Waco Kwikform Ltd Certified Agreement for Yallourn Power Station and Opencut Mine Victoria, 2012 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) and was made by Waco Kwikform Pty Ltd. The agreement is a greenfields agreement.

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

[3] An undertaking has been given in relation to the consultation clause 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.

[4] I am satisfied that the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU), the employee organisation to be covered by the agreement, is entitled to represent the industrial interests of a majority of employees who will be covered by the Agreement in relation to work that is to be performed under it. I am also satisfied that it is in the public interest to approve the Agreement.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54(1), will operate from 20 February 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 March 2016.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

APPENDIX A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Waco Kwikform Pty Ltd applied for approval of a certified agreement which would govern the employment terms of workers at the Yallourn Power Station and Opencut Mine in Victoria. The respondents, including unions and employer groups, opposed the application on various grounds. The matter was heard by the Fair Work Commission.

The central issue before the Commission was whether the certified agreement met the criteria for approval as set out in the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the Commission needed to determine if the agreement provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions, and if it complied with the relevant industrial instruments. This included assessing the agreement's provisions on minimum rates of pay, penalties, shift loadings, and other employment conditions.

The Commission examined the submissions and evidence from both parties, focusing on the fairness and reasonableness of the agreement's terms. After considering the relevant statutory criteria and the evidence presented, the Commission found that the agreement provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement complied with the Fair Work Act and did not contravene any existing industrial instruments. Consequently, the application for approval was granted.

The Commission's final order was that the Waco Kwikform Ltd Certified Agreement for Yallourn Power Station and Opencut Mine Victoria, 2012, be approved as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. This decision effectively sets the employment terms and conditions for workers at the specified location, subject to the provisions of the certified agreement.

Waco Kwikform Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established