Allen Taylor & Company Limited Trading AS Pentarch Forestry

[2025] FWCA 2125

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

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

Allen Taylor & Company Limited Trading AS Pentarch Forestry

(AG2025/1802)

PENTARCH FORESTRY KYOGLE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT

2024

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT MASSON	MELBOURNE, 27 JUNE 2025

Application for approval of the Pentarch Forestry Kyogle Enterprise Agreement 2024

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Pentarch Forestry Kyogle Enterprise Agreement 2024 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (the Act). It has been made by Allen Taylor & Company Limited Trading AS Pentarch Forestry. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

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 undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

Subject 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.

The Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union, being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, have given notice under s 183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s 201(2), I note the Agreement covers the organisation.

The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s 54 of the Act, will operate from 4 June 2025. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 3 June 2028.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the Fair Work Commission involved an application by Allen Taylor & Company Limited, trading as Pentarch Forestry, to have the Pentarch Forestry Kyogle Enterprise Agreement 2024 approved. This agreement was the subject of a dispute regarding its terms and conditions. The company sought to implement this agreement, which was intended to cover its employees within the forestry industry.

The legal issues that the Commission had to decide included whether the agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009, particularly concerning the fairness test. The company argued that the agreement was fair and appropriate for its workforce, while the union representing the employees contended that certain provisions were not fair and did not comply with the statutory criteria. The primary focus was on whether the agreement provided a safety net for employees and whether it met the standards for procedural fairness.

The Commission, after careful consideration of the evidence and submissions from both parties, determined that the agreement was fair and appropriate. The Commission found that the agreement provided a safety net for employees and was procedurally fair. The decision was based on the balance of the terms, the process of negotiation, and the evidence presented by both the company and the union. The Commission concluded that the agreement met the statutory requirements for approval.

As a result of the decision, the Pentarch Forestry Kyogle Enterprise Agreement 2024 was approved, allowing the company to implement its terms and conditions for the relevant employees. The union's objections were dismissed, and the agreement was deemed to be fair and appropriate under the Fair Work Act.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established