Application for termination of the Ausbuild Single Enterprise Agreement 2018

[1] Ausbuild Pty Ltd (Ausbuild) has applied, pursuant to s.222 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act), to terminate the Ausbuild Single Enterprise Agreement 2018[1] (the Agreement). The Agreement is expressed to cover clerical, construction and sales employees engaged by Ausbuild under the Agreement.

[2] Sections 222 and 223 of the Act sets out the conditions which must be met for an agreement to be terminated pursuant to s.222 of the Act:

"222 Application for FWC approval of a termination of an enterprise agreement

(1) If a termination of an enterprise agreement has been agreed to, a person covered by the agreement must apply to FWC for approval of the termination.

(2) The application must be accompanied by any declarations that are required by the procedural rules to accompany the application.

(3) The application must be made:

• (a) within 14 days after the termination is agreed to; or

• (b) if in all the circumstances FWC considers it fair to extend that period - within such further period as FWC allows.

223 When the FWC must approve a termination of an enterprise agreement

If an application for the approval of a termination of an enterprise agreement is made under section 222, the FWC must approve the termination if:

(a) the FWC is satisfied that each employer covered by the agreement complied with subsection 220(2) (which deals with giving employees a reasonable opportunity to decide etc.) in relation to the agreement; and

(b) the FWC is satisfied that the termination was agreed to in accordance with whichever of subsection 221(1) or (2) applies (those subsections deal with agreement to the termination of different kinds of enterprise agreements by employee vote); and

(c) the FWC is satisfied that there are no other reasonable grounds for believing that the employees have not agreed to the termination; and

(d) the FWC considers that it is appropriate to approve the termination taking into account the views of the employee organisation or employee organisations (if any) covered by the agreement.

If a termination of an enterprise agreement is approved under section 223, the termination operates from the day specified in the decision to approve the termination."

[3] The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement. It was approved by the Fair Work Commission (the FWC/Commission) on 8 October 2018.[2] It began operation on 15 October 2018 with a nominal expiry date of 15 October 2022. It is an agreement made directly with employees and no industrial organisation is covered by it.

[4] I am satisfied that the requirements of s.222(1) and (2) of the Act are met. The application to terminate the Agreement has been made by Ausbuild, a person covered by the Agreement. Further, it was accompanied by the material required by the Fair Work Commission Rules 2024, being made by Form F24 and is accompanied by a Form F24A declaration setting out the basis upon which the FWC can be satisfied that the requirements of s.223 of the Act have been met.

[5] Section 222(3) sets out the timeframe within which an application must be made. In its Form F24, the Applicant stated the termination was agreed to on 4 August 2025 and the application was lodged on 18 August 2025, which is within the 14-day timeframe stipulated at s.222(3)(a) of the Act.

[6] I must approve the application if I am satisfied that the requirements set out in s.223 of the Act are met. I consider each of those requirements below.

Each employer covered by the agreement complied with subsection 220(2) in relation to the agreement - s.223(a)

[7] The employer must take all reasonable steps to notify the employees of the time and date of the vote, the voting method that will be used (s.220(2)(a)) and give those employees a reasonable opportunity to decide whether to approve the proposed termination (s.220(2)(b)).

[8] In the Form F24A Mr Hall, who is the General Counsel of Ausbuild, declared the steps taken in respect of s.220(2)(a) and s.220(2)(b).

[9] I am satisfied, on the basis of the material before me, that the above steps satisfy the requirements of s.220(2)(a) and s.220(2)(b).

The termination was agreed to in accordance with whichever of subsection 221(1) or (2) applies - s.223(b)

[10] The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement and therefore s.221(1) applies. Section 221(1) provides that if the employees have been asked to approve a proposed termination in accordance with s.220(1), the termination is agreed to when a majority of the employees who cast a valid vote approve the termination.

[11] In the Form F24A, Mr Hall, declared that voting commenced on 4 August 2025 and ended that same day, as such, the termination was agreed to on 4 August 2025. Mr Hall detailed the number of employees covered by the Agreement, how many voted and how many voted to approve the termination of the Agreement.

[12] Having regard to the circumstances of this matter, I am satisfied that the termination was agreed to in accordance with s.221(1).

There are no other reasonable grounds for believing that the employees have not agreed to the termination - s.223(c)

[13] I am satisfied that there are no other reasonable grounds for believing that the employees covered by the Agreement have not agreed to the termination.

It is appropriate to approve the termination taking into account the views of the employee organisation or employee organisations (if any) covered by the agreement - s.223(d)

[14] As outlined above, the Agreement is expressed to cover the Applicant and its employees engaged in the classifications contained in the Agreement[3] As it does not cover any employee organisation, there are no views to take into account pursuant to s.223(d).

[15] In the circumstances I consider it appropriate to approve the termination. The termination will operate from 9 September 2025. An order giving effect to this decision will be issued separately.[4]

[1] [2018] FWC 6141.

[4] AE500311 PR791580.

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