Team Global Express Bungarribee Contract Carriers Agreement 2021 [2024] NSWIRComm 1002

DECISION

1. The Transport Workers' Union of New South Wales ("TWU") has applied for approval of a contract agreement to be known as the Team Global Express Bungarribee Contract Carriers Agreement 2021 ("Agreement"). The application is brought pursuant to s 324 of the Industrial Relations Act 1996 ("Act").
2. The parties to the Agreement are the TWU and Team Global Express Pty Ltd ("TGE"): cl 3.1. The Agreement was executed on behalf of TGE on 8 December 2023 and on behalf of the TWU on 12 January 2024.
3. On reading the TWU's application and the material filed in support of it, two matters of particular concern arose. First, cl 5.1 of the Agreement provides that its nominal term was 1 September 2021 to 1 September 2023. That is, the Commission is being asked to approve a contract agreement after the expiry of its nominal term. Second, the evidence filed in support of the application did not wholly address the requirements of the principles set by the Commission pursuant to s 33 of the Act in Review of the Principles for Approval of Enterprise Agreements 2021/2022 [2022] NSWIRComm 1005, as required by s 325(3) of the Act.
4. I listed the matter for mention on 18 January 2024. Sophia Nasser appeared for the TWU. Stephanie Evans appeared for TGE.
5. During the mention, I had the following exchange with Ms Nasser: "COMMISSIONER: …The matter has been listed for mention today for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, I guess, to invite the parties to give - explain to me why it is that there is an application for approval [of an] agreement which has passed its nominal expiry date. Ms Nasser are you able to shed any light on that? NASSER: Yes, thank you, Commissioner, that must have been interesting coming across your desk without context so I do apologise. So, the background for that is on 30 August 2021 the TWU and the respondent entered into a Common Law Deed regarding the sale of the Global Express Division of Toll to Allegro Funds. So, a part of that - as part of that sale, the contract of contract carriers working in the Global Express Division transferred by agreement from Toll Transport to the respondent. So, as part of the operative provisions of that deed, the respondent acknowledged and agreed that it would continue to apply the terms of the applicable industrial agreement after the completion of the transaction until these instruments were terminated or replaced. So, what we are seeking to do is establish a contract agreement that applies from the date of the sale, which was 1 September 2021, so that there is an industrial instrument that covers the contract carriers from that time. In terms of the expiry, being 1 September 2023, the rationale behind this was this would give the parties scope to commence negotiating for a new agreement immediately having regard to the changes that have taken place in the business since the sale and to be able to align those with other industrial instruments that the parties are a party to which will expire in 2026. So, that is kind of the rationale behind the application."