DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

Zinfra Contracting Pty Ltd
(AG2015/2817)

ZINFRA CONTRACTING PTY LTD NEW SOUTH WALES ELECTRICAL WORKS AGREEMENT 2014

Electrical contracting industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT LAWRENCE	SYDNEY, 11 JUNE 2015

Application for approval of the Zinfra Contracting Pty Ltd New South Wales Electrical Works Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Zinfra Contracting Pty Ltd New South Wales Electrical Works Agreement 2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

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

[3] The Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services 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. As required by s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved. In accordance with s.54(1) it will operate from 18 June 2015. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 September 2017.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicants, Zinfra Contracting Pty Ltd, sought approval from the Federal Circuit and Family Court for the New South Wales Electrical Works Agreement 2014. The application was made under the Fair Work Act 2009, as the applicants and the Electrical Trades Union of Australia intended the agreement to become an enterprise agreement. The dispute centred on whether the agreement met the legal requirements for approval and whether it provided for appropriate employee protections and benefits.

The legal issues before the court included whether the agreement contained all the mandatory terms required by the Fair Work Act, if it provided for fair and reasonable terms for the employees, and if it was genuinely negotiated between the parties. Additionally, the court had to consider if the agreement complied with the principles of good faith bargaining and if it was in the best interests of the employees.

The court found that the agreement met all the necessary criteria for approval. The agreement contained all the mandatory terms required by the Fair Work Act, including provisions for wages, hours of work, and other conditions of employment. The court was satisfied that the terms were fair and reasonable, and that the agreement was the product of genuine negotiations between the parties. Furthermore, the court determined that the agreement complied with the principles of good faith bargaining and was in the best interests of the employees. Consequently, the court approved the New South Wales Electrical Works Agreement 2014.

The final orders of the court approved the New South Wales Electrical Works Agreement 2014 as an enterprise agreement. This decision enabled the agreement to be registered with the Fair Work Commission, and it became legally binding on the parties involved. The approval of the agreement facilitated a stable working relationship between Zinfra Contracting Pty Ltd and the Electrical Trades Union of Australia, and provided employees with the protections and benefits outlined in the agreement.

Zinfra Contracting Pty Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established