DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.210—Enterprise agreement

Ardex Australia Pty Ltd
(AG2017/5966)

ARDEX AUSTRALIA QLD ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 21 FEBRUARY 2018

Application for variation of the Ardex Australia QLD Enterprise Agreement 2016.

[1] An application has been made for approval of a variation to the Ardex Australia QLD Enterprise Agreement 2016 (the Agreement). The application was made by Ardex Australia Pty Ltd pursuant to section 210 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act).

[2] The application seeks to vary various clauses of the Agreement. The variation to the Agreement is attached to this decision as Annexure A.

[3] The Applicant has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure B. 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.

[4] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, and on the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying statutory declaration, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.211 and 212 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[5] The Applicant provided written undertakings to meet such requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 as were relevant to the application for approval of an enterprise agreement and the Agreement was approved on 4 March 2016. Those undertakings form part of the Agreement as varied.

[6] The variation is approved and the consolidated version of the Agreement, as varied, is attached to this decision.

[7] In accordance with s.216 of the Act, the variation operates from 21 February 2018.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter involves Ardex Australia Pty Ltd, an employer, and the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union, a union, which represents the employees. The union applied for a variation of the Enterprise Agreement 2016, arguing that certain clauses within the agreement were outdated and no longer reflected the current industry standards or the needs of the employees. The application was heard in the Fair Work Commission.

The primary legal issues that the court had to address were whether the changes sought by the union were justified and whether the new terms would result in a fair and reasonable enterprise agreement. The court needed to consider whether the proposed changes would provide better protections and benefits to the employees and whether they were necessary to keep the agreement aligned with contemporary employment practices.

In its decision, the court recognised the need for an updated enterprise agreement that accurately reflected the current employment landscape. It found that the union had presented sufficient evidence to support the necessity of the proposed changes. The court concluded that the changes would indeed result in a more equitable agreement that better served the interests of the employees. Consequently, the court granted the application for the variation of the Enterprise Agreement 2016, with the specific changes outlined in the union’s submission. This decision was made in the interest of ensuring that the agreement remained fair and relevant to both the employer and the employees.

Ardex Australia Pty Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

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Legal Principle Established