Whitehaven Coal Mining Limited

[2022] FWCA 1262

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Whitehaven Coal Mining Limited

(AG2022/934)

Narrabri Underground Operations Enterprise Agreement 2022

Mining industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT EASTON	SYDNEY, 11 APRIL 2022

Application for the approval of Narrabri Underground Operations Enterprise Agreement 2022.

Whitehaven Coal Mining Limited (the Employer) has made an application for the approval of the Narrabri Underground Operations Enterprise Agreement 2022 (the Agreement). The application was made under s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

The Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMMEU) was a bargaining representative for the Agreement and 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 CFMMEU.

The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 18 April 2022. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 October 2024.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case involves an application by Whitehaven Coal Mining Limited for the approval of the Narrabri Underground Operations Enterprise Agreement 2022. The dispute centres on whether the enterprise agreement, which was subject to a ballot of the employees, meets the statutory requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. The application was heard in the Fair Work Commission, an industrial relations tribunal with jurisdiction to make decisions on such matters.

The central legal issues before the Commission were whether the ballot process was conducted in accordance with the relevant statutory provisions, and if the agreement itself complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act. This included scrutinising whether the agreement was certified as a single, indivisible document and whether it had been fairly and properly presented to the employees. The Commission also considered whether the agreement contained all the necessary prescribed terms and if it was in the best interests of the employees.

The Fair Work Commission found that the ballot process was conducted in a manner consistent with the Act, with all procedural requirements satisfied. The Commission also determined that the enterprise agreement complied with the statutory requirements. It was a single, indivisible document and was presented to the employees in a fair and proper manner. Furthermore, the agreement contained all the prescribed terms and was found to be in the best interests of the employees. Based on these findings, the Commission approved the agreement, allowing it to come into effect.

Consequently, the Fair Work Commission approved the Narrabri Underground Operations Enterprise Agreement 2022, finding it to be compliant with the statutory requirements and in the best interests of the employees. This decision provides certainty for both the employer and the employees regarding the terms of their employment under the new agreement.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established