Fair Work Act 2009
s.156 - 4 yearly review of modern awards

4 yearly review of modern awards—Group 4 awards
(AM2014/250 and others)

4 yearly review of modern awards – award stage – Group 4 awards.

[1] Section 156 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) requires the Fair Work Commission (the Commission) to review all modern awards every four years (the Review). In the Award stage of the Review the 122 modern awards have been divided into 4 groups. The awards allocated to Group 4 are listed at Attachment A to this Statement. As proposed in the 24 February 2016 Statement 1 the 40 awards in Group 4 will be dealt with in two tranches – sub-groups 4A, 4B & 4C and sub-groups 4D, 4E & 4F. A Statement and amended directions were issued on 10 May 20162 outlining the proposed timetable for dealing with the awards in Group 4.

Plain language

[2] As confirmed in the Statement issued by the Commission on 15 July 2016 3, three awards in Group 4F will undergo plain language drafting and be the subject of separate directions issued by the Full Bench dealing with the plain language process. The affected awards are:

Construction awards

[3] Group 4C contains a number of awards in the building, construction and allied industries sector including the following four awards (collectively referred to as the Construction awards),:

[4] In the February 2016 Statement, claims to vary the provisions in the Construction awards were referred to Senior Deputy President Watson for conciliation in order to:

● categorise the various issues raised in relation to the Construction awards;
● seek to resolve the matters in dispute; and
● identify those matters that require referral to a separately constituted Full Bench.

[5] The conciliation process has involved two sets of conferences:

● conciliation in relation to the On-Site, Joinery and Mobile Crane awards; and
● conciliation in relation to the Plumbing Award.

[6] In the course of the conciliation process in relation to the On-Site, Joinery and Mobile Crane awards it became evident that there is a substantial overlap between the claims to vary these awards and drafting and technical issues arising out of the exposure drafts. It appears that a substantial number of exposure draft issues will be resolved or affected by the outcomes in relation to the substantive variation claims. Parties with an interest in these awards have suggested that concurrent processes in relation to the claims to vary the Construction awards and the drafting and technical issues would create confusion. The parties propose that the 4 yearly review of these awards should be programmed sequentially, dealing first with the claims to vary followed, upon the determination of the substantive claims, by the determination of the remaining drafting and technical issues. I am satisfied that the proposed sequenced programming would assist the orderly and efficient conclusion of the review of these awards.

[7] To give effect to the proposed sequenced programming, the amended directions of 10 May 2016 for the filing of reply submissions on the exposure drafts based on the On-Site, Joinery and Mobile Crane awards are vacated.

[8] New directions for the filing of reply submissions on the Exposure Drafts drafting and technical issues in the On-Site, Plumbing, Joinery and Mobile Crane awards will be made in due course.

[9] Conciliation in respect to the Plumbing award disclosed no substantial overlap between the claims to vary this award and the technical and drafting issues arising out of the Exposure Drafts. The matters in issue in each case are of limited compass and the interested parties saw no reason to delay either process. Accordingly, the Exposure draft directions will remain in place. Some major parties did not, however, file initial exposure draft submissions by 30 June 2016 as required by the amended directions of 23 May 2016, causing some unfairness to other parties required to file rely submissions by 21 July 2016. In these circumstances, the amended directions of 10 May 2016 will be further amended in respect of the Plumbing Award to require the filing of submissions in reply by 3 August 2016.

[10] The amended directions of 10 May 2016 for the filing of reply submissions on the exposure drafts in respect of the following Group 4C awards will remain in place:

Group 4D, 4E & 4F exposure drafts

[11] Due to the resource demands associated with the Review, the publication of exposure drafts for the awards allocated to Groups 4D, 4E and 4F has been deferred until September 2016. The directions in relation to filing material for these awards have been pushed back accordingly. The revised timeline is as follows:

[12] Amended directions are attached.

PRESIDENT

ATTACHMENT A—Group 4 awards divided by sub-group

^ Note the Electrical, Electronic and Communications Contracting Award 2010 was incorrectly allocated to Group 4A in an earlier Statement.

Fair Work Act 2009
s.156 - 4 yearly review of modern awards

4 yearly review of modern awards—Group 4
(AM2014/250 and others)

It is directed that:

1. On or before 4.00 pm on Thursday 21 July 2016 each interested party is to file in the Commission submissions in reply on the technical and drafting issues related to exposure drafts in Groups 4A, 4B and 4C (except the Construction group).

2. On or before 4.00 pm on Wednesday 3 August 2016 each interested party is to file in the Commission submissions in reply on the technical and drafting issues related to the exposure drafts based on the Plumbing and Fire Sprinklers Award 2010.

Note: Further directions will be issued in relation to the remaining awards in the Construction group following the determination of the substantive issues in these awards.

3. The drafting and technical issues in the Group 4A, 4B and 4C exposure drafts will be listed for hearing in late August.

4. On or before 4.00 pm on Thursday 24 November 2016 each interested party is to file in the Commission submissions on the technical and drafting issues related to exposure drafts in Groups 4D, 4E and 4F (except the awards that are subject to the Plain language process).

5. On or before 4.00 pm on Thursday 19 January 2017 each interested party is to file in the Commission submissions in reply on the technical and drafting issues related to exposure drafts in Groups 4D, 4E and 4F (except the awards that are subject to the Plain language process).

6. Leave is granted to apply generally.

7. All material should be sent to amod@fwc.gov.au.

PRESIDENT

 1   [2016] FWC 1191; see also [2016] FWC 1838

 2   [2016] FWC 2924

 3   [2016] FWC 4756

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