DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Airbus Australia Pacific Limited T/A Airbus
(AG2017/4284)

AIRBUS GROUP (TOWNSVILLE OPERATIONS) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2017

Airline operations
COMMISSIONER LEE	MELBOURNE, 16 FEBRUARY 2018

Application for approval of the Airbus Group (Townsville Operations) Enterprise Agreement 2017.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Airbus Group (Townsville Operations) Enterprise Agreement 2017 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Airbus Australia Pacific Limited T/A Airbus. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Applicant has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement.

[3] Subject to the undertakings 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.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 23 February 2018. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 25 March 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Airbus Australia Pacific Limited, trading as Airbus, applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Airbus Group (Townsville Operations) Enterprise Agreement 2017. The application arose under section 231 of the Fair Work Act 2009, seeking the Commission’s endorsement of the proposed agreement which was intended to regulate the terms and conditions of employment for employees working in the Townsville operations of Airbus.

The primary legal issue the Commission had to address was whether the agreement met the requirements for "better off overall or at least no worse off" (BOOT) as stipulated in the Fair Work Act. This involved examining if the proposed agreement provided employees with terms and conditions that were at least as good as those provided by the relevant award or previous enterprise agreement, or if it offered them better conditions. Furthermore, the Commission needed to determine if the agreement had been made in accordance with the procedural requirements set out in the Act.

The Fair Work Commission found that the Airbus Group (Townsville Operations) Enterprise Agreement 2017 complied with the BOOT test. The agreement provided employees with conditions that were at least as good as, and in some cases better than, those provided by the relevant award. The Commission also concluded that the agreement had been made in good faith and in accordance with the procedural requirements of the Fair Work Act. The Commission approved the agreement, finding that it was in the best interests of the employees covered by it. The decision was based on the evidence presented, which demonstrated that the agreement had been developed through a process of genuine consultation and negotiation between Airbus and the relevant employee representatives.

Airbus Australia Pacific Limited T/A Airbus

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established