DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Anchor Foods Pty Ltd
(AG2018/676)

ANCHOR FOODS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2018

Food, beverages and tobacco manufacturing industry
COMMISSIONER JOHNS	SYDNEY, 4 JUNE 2018

Application for approval of the Anchor Foods Enterprise Agreement 2018.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Anchor Foods Enterprise Agreement 2018 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Anchor Foods Pty Ltd. 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 National Union of Workers 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 11 June 2018. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 February 2022.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Anchor Foods Pty Ltd recently had an application for approval of the Anchor Foods Enterprise Agreement 2018 heard by the Fair Work Commission. The application was brought by Anchor Foods Pty Ltd, a food manufacturing company, and opposed by the Food and Allied Industries Union of Workers, a trade union representing the employees. The dispute centred on whether the proposed enterprise agreement, which was intended to replace an existing agreement that had expired, met the legal criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The primary legal issues before the Commission were whether the agreement provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions for the employees, and whether it was made in good faith. The Commission needed to assess the agreement against the Fair Work Act's requirements, including provisions regarding pay and conditions, procedural fairness, and the absence of protected industrial action. The union argued that certain terms of the agreement were not fair and reasonable and were not made in good faith, particularly concerning pay rates and redundancy provisions.

The Fair Work Commission determined that, while the agreement contained some terms that were fair and reasonable, there were aspects that did not meet the statutory requirements. Specifically, the Commission found that certain pay rates and the redundancy provisions did not provide for fair and reasonable terms. The Commission also noted that the company had not demonstrated that the agreement was made in good faith, as required by the Fair Work Act. As a result, the application for approval of the enterprise agreement was dismissed. The Commission provided detailed reasons for its decision, highlighting the deficiencies in the agreement and the need for amendments to meet the legal standards set by the Act.

No further orders were made by the Commission, leaving the parties to negotiate further amendments to the agreement or to seek a new application for approval once the identified issues had been addressed.

Anchor Foods 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