Introduction
In Australia, there are specific ways that employees could be employed. Various forms of employment contracts have significant impacts on rights and entitlements. Noteworthy to mention is the fact that Australia is a federation with six states and two internal territories; as such, the conducts of industries are guided by a legislative law and statutes. Two of the main structures of contracts are awards and agreements which legally binds the employment. On the one hand, awards embark on the rights and obligations of employers about hours of employment, pay rates, penalty rates, loadings, allowances, leave entitlements, employment protection provisions and part-time or casual work. On the other hand, like awards agreements are legal documents that specify rights, entitlements and obligations of employers and employees.
The basics of enterprise agreements
As said by Brassil, “enterprise agreements are agreements made by workers in a particular workplace with their employer which override exiting awards or agreement” (241). Enterprise agreements could be negotiated at both state and federal levels whereby the terms contained in the agreements will also determine the rights and duties of employees and employers. Awards, on the other hand, refers to a decision made by a federal or state industrial tribunal that sets out the general rules governing the behaviours between employers and employees in a particular type of employment. Awards usually contain rates of pay, leave arrangement and hours of work.
In case that conflict occurs, the general rules apply: first, the terms contained in an enterprise agreement override those contained in award; second, conditions contained in an award override those contained in an individual contract, unless those provided by the contract are more advantageous to the employee; third, legislation prevails over common law rules; and fourth, awards, agreements and individual contracts must abide by legislation. Under the Workplace Relations Act 1996, Australian Workplace Agreements which is a form of individual contract that can be made, could override enterprise agreements and awards and both state and federal awards however (Ibid.).
The benefits of enterprise agreements
Enterprise agreements advent employee in many ways. A collective agreement that could identify and address the particular needs of a business, enterprise agreements clarifies the rates of pays and conditions of employment and provides greater entitlements. To ensure that the interests of the employees are protected, they can be represented in negotiation by a union or it can be negotiated by a nominated committee of employees voted by the majority of employees (65%). Also, enterprise agreements is subject to a ‘no disadvantage test’ before it can registered which means that the agreement must by no mean provide disadvantages to employees when compared with the award. If the conditions set out in the agreements are breached, an application for remedy of the breach or recovery of entitlements can be made before Industrial Relations Commission in respective states in accordance with the Industrial Relations Act 1996 (Australian Workers Union).
The differences with awards
The main difference, however, is that agreement only applies to the employees of one particular company. As such, agreements conform to a case-to-case basis. The conditions set out on awards are applied to all the workers in an industry and these cannot be altered by the employer unilaterally. In awards, a minimum standard for enterprise bargaining is being clarified as well and there are no limits to when you can strike. Awards are also adjusted each year by the union in either the National or State Wage Cases. For agreements, alternatively, it is a collective agreement where enterprise bargaining could result in significant improvements in wages and conditions. Nonetheless, workers have the autonomy to prioritise the issues more important to them (Ibid; Office of Industrial Relations).
The applications of enterprise agreements in building and construction industry
As already mentioned, enterprise agreements are specific to a particular enterprise or project; the building and construction industry is not an exemption. Inherent to this industry is the key features of the construction industry agreements such as the trends in construction agreements that covers wage increases, earnings and employee benefits; performance pay initiatives and KPIs; hours of work arrangements; leave provisions; communication, OHS, training, grievance procedures and redundancy; and EEO and family friend provisions. Union/non-union and AWAs and changes in the agreement over time are also covered (Royal Commission into the Building and Construction Industry, 2).
Aside from statutes, the six states have respective code of practice for the building and construction industry which also covers the enterprise agreements between employers and employees. The cooperative nature in the management of industrial relations which involves the participation of employers, industry associations, unions, contractors, sub-contractors, consultants and suppliers to comply with the standards of the respective Codes, to transparently communicate with industry participants and to commit to a best practice working environment. Based on this, all parties are responsible for employment equality of opportunity as set out in awards and legal obligations relating to employment such as the enterprise agreements (Industrial Relations Victoria, 3).
Registered enterprise bargaining agreements are applied apart from applicable federal laws and other legislative requirements. Enterprise agreements and the contents are upheld in such a way that a party must not be pressured or coerced another party to enter either directly or indirectly. Within the industry, the integrity of individual enterprise agreements should be maintained. (4). However, the recent trend now is patter bargaining whereby the occurrence of a common approach to the inclusion of a number of key provisions in collective arrangements is possible. Pattern bargaining is regarded to be where either union or employers or the employer association have attempted to strategically and deliberately ensure common outcomes in agreements in the industry (Royal Commission into the Building and Construction Industry, 34).
Conclusion
The main difference between awards and agreements is their scope; awards are applicable on all employees while enterprise agreements are applicable only to a specific industry. Despite this fact, enterprise agreements greatly profit employees as this employee contract is subjected to ‘no disadvantage test’. In the building and construction industry, the enterprise agreements are applied in accordance to specific statutes applied for the purpose of honing a cooperative approach to industrial relationship management. The pattern bargaining is the most recent trend in the building and construction industry.
References
Australian Workers Union. Employment Contracts. 15 August 2008 < http://awu-nsw.asn.au/rights/emp_contracts.html>.
Brassil, Belinda. Excel HSC Legal Studies. Pascal Press, 2007.
Office of Industrial Relations. Rights and Responsibilities. 15 August 2008
<http://www.industrialrelations.nsw.gov.au/rights/employer/relation/agreemt.html>.
Royal Commission into the Building and Construction Industry. Key Features and Trends in Building and Construction Industry Enterprise Agreements. Discussion Paper 5. 15 August 2008
< http://www.royalcombci.gov.au/docs/DP%205%20Key%20Feat.pdf>.
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