DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Aegis Aged Care Staff Pty Ltd
(AG2015/2765)

AEGIS AGED CARE GROUP (ANF) NURSES COLLECTIVE WORKPLACE AGREEMENT 2015

Health and welfare services
DEPUTY PRESIDENT KOVACIC	MELBOURNE, 5 JUNE 2015

Application for approval of the Aegis Aged Care Group (ANF) Nurses Collective Workplace Agreement 2015.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Aegis Aged Care Group (ANF) Nurses Collective Workplace Agreement 2015 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Aegis Aged Care Staff Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] Subject to concerns that have been addressed by way of undertakings, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] As noted, pursuant to s.190(3), I have accepted undertakings from Aegis Aged Care Staff Pty Ltd. In accordance with s.191(1) of the Act the undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement. A copy of the undertakings are attached to this decision.

[4] The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation 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.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 12 June 2015. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 20 May 2018.

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Aegis Aged Care Staff Pty Ltd applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Aegis Aged Care Group (ANF) Nurses Collective Workplace Agreement 2015. The application was made under section 233 of the Fair Work Act 2009. The respondents to the application included the Registered Nurses’ Union of Australia and the Aged and Community Services Union. The dispute centred around whether the proposed workplace agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act, including whether it provided for a fair and efficient workplace, and whether it complied with the process for approving multi-employer agreements.

The legal issues before the commission involved determining whether the proposed agreement was fair and reasonable in all its terms, and whether the agreement had been appropriately negotiated and reached. The commission needed to consider the provisions of the agreement, the process through which it was negotiated, and the interests of the employees and employers involved. It was also necessary to consider whether the agreement met the statutory requirements for multi-employer agreements and if it provided for a fair and efficient workplace.

The Fair Work Commission found that the proposed agreement was fair and reasonable in all its terms. The commission noted that the agreement had been negotiated in good faith and was supported by a majority of the employees. The commission also found that the agreement provided for a fair and efficient workplace, and that it met the statutory requirements for multi-employer agreements. The commission concluded that the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and employers involved, and approved the agreement under section 233 of the Fair Work Act.

The final orders of the commission were that the Aegis Aged Care Group (ANF) Nurses Collective Workplace Agreement 2015 be approved as a registered agreement under section 173 of the Fair Work Act. The agreement was to be registered on the condition that any changes to the agreement must be approved by the commission under section 233 of the Act. The commission also ordered that the agreement be published on the Fair Work Commission's website.

Aegis Aged Care Staff Pty Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established