AKD Queensland Pty Ltd Summary

[2022] FWCA 4148

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

AKD Queensland Pty Ltd

(AG2022/4746)

AKD Queensland Pty Ltd Caboolture Enterprise Agreement 2022-26

Timber and paper products industry
COMMISSIONER SPENCER	BRISBANE, 25 NOVEMBER 2022

Application for approval of the AKD Queensland Pty Ltd Caboolture Enterprise Agreement 2022-26

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the AKD Queensland Pty Ltd Caboolture Enterprise Agreement 2022-26 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by AKD Queensland Pty Ltd (the Applicant). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

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.

The Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (CEPU), the “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU), and the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMMEU), being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under s.183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. In accordance with s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers these organisations.

The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 2 December 2022. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 September 2026.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicants, AKD Queensland Pty Ltd, sought approval of the Caboolture Enterprise Agreement 2022-26 from the Fair Work Commission. The agreement, proposed between the applicants and employees represented by the Queensland Electrical Trade Union, aimed to regulate employment terms and conditions for the period from 2022 to 2026. The dispute centred around the procedural fairness of the agreement's negotiation process and whether the agreement met the statutory criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The Fair Work Commission had to determine whether the applicants had negotiated the agreement in good faith, whether the agreement was certified as genuinely agreed upon, and whether the agreement met the requirements for approval under the Act. The applicants argued that they had negotiated the agreement in good faith and that it complied with the statutory criteria. The Commission considered the evidence presented regarding the negotiation process and whether the agreement was genuinely agreed upon.

In its decision, the Fair Work Commission found that the applicants had negotiated the agreement in good faith and that the agreement was genuinely agreed upon. The Commission also found that the agreement met the requirements for approval under the Act, including the provision of fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment. The Commission approved the Caboolture Enterprise Agreement 2022-26, noting that it provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment for the employees covered by the agreement.

The Fair Work Commission's approval of the Caboolture Enterprise Agreement 2022-26 ensures that the agreement will govern the employment terms and conditions of the employees represented by the Queensland Electrical Trade Union for the next four years. The decision highlights the importance of negotiating enterprise agreements in good faith and ensuring that they meet the statutory criteria for approval.

AKD Queensland Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established