Accident Compensation Conciliation Service Summary

[2021] FWCA 7142

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Accident Compensation Conciliation Service
(AG2021/8687)

ACCIDENT COMPENSATION CONCILIATION SERVICE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2021-2025

State and Territory government administration
COMMISSIONER O'NEILL	MELBOURNE, 20 DECEMBER 2021

Application for approval of the Accident Compensation Conciliation Service Enterprise Agreement 2021-2025

[1] Accident Compensation Conciliation Service has applied for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Accident Compensation Conciliation Service Enterprise Agreement 2021-2025 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) and is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Employer notified employees of the time, place, and voting method on 10 November 2021. The vote occurred on 16 November 2021. Employees were therefore not informed of the voting details at the start of the access period as required by s.180(3) of the Act. However, I am satisfied that the Agreement would have been genuinely agreed to but for the minor procedural departure from the requirements of s.180(3), and that the employees covered by the Agreement were not likely to have been disadvantaged by this error. Accordingly, I exercise the discretion conferred by s.188(2) of the Act.

[3] The Employer has provided a written undertaking. A copy of the undertaking is attached in Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertaking will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertaking will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement. The undertaking is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[4] Subject to the undertaking referred to above, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[5] The CPSU, the Community and Public Sector Union being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[6] I observe that the following provisions are likely to be inconsistent with the National Employment Standards (NES):

• Clause 28.3 – Notice of Termination by Employee; and

• Clause 50.2 – Personal Leave.

However, noting the undertaking given by the Employer, I am satisfied the more beneficial entitlements of the NES will prevail where there is an inconsistency between the Agreement and the NES.

[7] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 27 December 2021. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 March 2025.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Accident Compensation Conciliation Service sought approval of the Accident Compensation Conciliation Service Enterprise Agreement 2021-2025, which was the subject of an application before the Fair Work Commission. The applicant argued that the agreement was fit for approval under the relevant legislation. The union representing the employees contested the application, asserting that the agreement did not meet certain legislative requirements.

The primary legal issues that the Commission needed to address were whether the agreement complied with the Fair Work Act 2009, particularly regarding its coverage of employees, the terms and conditions of employment, and the procedural fairness of the agreement-making process. The Commission had to examine if the agreement was a "single-enterprise agreement" as defined in the Act and if it provided for minimum terms and conditions as required by the legislation.

In delivering its decision, the Fair Work Commission considered the evidence and submissions from both parties. It found that the agreement met the necessary criteria for approval. The Commission concluded that the agreement was a single-enterprise agreement and provided for all the required minimum terms and conditions. The Commission also determined that the agreement-making process was procedurally fair and that the agreement did not unfairly discriminate against any class of employees. Based on these findings, the Commission approved the Accident Compensation Conciliation Service Enterprise Agreement 2021-2025.

The Fair Work Commission's approval of the Accident Compensation Conciliation Service Enterprise Agreement 2021-2025 marked the resolution of the dispute. The agreement now serves as the basis for the terms and conditions of employment for the employees covered by it.

Accident Compensation Conciliation Service

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established