Aristocrat Technologies Australia Pty Ltd

[2025] FWCA 530

[2025] FWCA 530

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

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

Aristocrat Technologies Australia Pty Ltd

(AG2024/5306)

ARISTOCRAT TECHNOLOGIES AUSTRALIA PTY LIMITED AIC ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2024

Gaming manufacturing industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT WRIGHT	SYDNEY, 10 FEBRUARY 2025

Application for approval of the Aristocrat Technologies Australia Pty Limited AIC Enterprise Agreement 2024

Introduction

1. Aristocrat Technologies Australia Pty Ltd (the Employer) has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Aristocrat Technologies Australia Pty Limited AIC Enterprise Agreement 2024 (the Agreement) pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

1. The Agreement will apply to employees who are covered by the Manufacturing and Associated Industries and Occupations Award 2020 (the Award).

Access to rates during bargaining

1. During the application process, two proposed pay structures were submitted to the Commission. While the Agreement includes the agreed classification structure, it does not specify the rates of pay for each classification. This omission raised concerns about whether employees had access to the rates of pay during bargaining and fully understood their pay entitlements.

1. The Employer provided emails to the Commission that were provided to the employees, comparing the rates under the Agreement with those under the Award. Having regard to these emails, paragraph 18 of the Statement of Principles and the Full Bench decision in VIP Plastic Packaging Pty Ltd (VIP),[1] I am satisfied that the employees who voted for the Agreement had an informed and genuine understanding of what was being approved.

Rates of pay not specified in the Agreement

1. Clause 8.1 of the Agreement provides the annual percentage increase which will be applied to an employee's ordinary rate of pay. It states that any new employees will be paid above the base ordinary rate of pay for the relevant classification as outlined in Appendix A, plus the annual percentage increase. While Appendix A provides a classification structure, it does not specify the applicable rates of pay, so it unclear what rates the increases are based on. The absence of pay rates in the Agreement may be contrary to the decision in VIP, in which the Full Bench observed, that it would not be open for the Commission to be satisfied that employees who would be covered by the agreement in that case would be better off overall if pay rates  were not included in the agreement.[2] The Full Bench also said in that case that the approval of an agreement that failed to disclose the rates of pay employees were entitled to receive may be inconsistent with the Commission’s obligation under s.577(1)(c) of the Act to perform its functions in an ‘open and transparent’ manner.

1. The Employer explained that Aristocrat provides minimum rates of pay which are above the Award rates of pay and that employees are either paid Aristocrat’s minimum rates or above these rates. The Employer has provided an undertaking that incorporates Aristocrat’s minimum rates into the Agreement. The Employer has additionally undertaken to provide employees with letters outlining their classification level, the Aristocrat minimum rate for that level, their current rate of pay, and the salary increases over the lifetime of the Agreement. An example of these letters was provided to the Commission for review.

Time off instead of payment for overtime

1. Clause 10.2 of the Agreement makes provision for time off instead of payment for overtime (TOIL). However, it stipulates that the company must, upon an employee’s request, provide payment for any accrued but unused overtime within four weeks of accrual. This provision appears to be inconsistent with clause 32.8 of the Award, which permits employees to request payment for overtime at any time within six months of the overtime being worked.

1. The Employer provided an undertaking to address this issue.

Cashing out Annual Leave

1. Clause 11.1.5 of the Agreement provides that payment for cashed-out leave is at the employee’s ordinary rate of pay and that annual leave loading is not applicable to cashed-out leave. This clause may be inconsistent with clause 34.13(f) of the Award which states that the payment for cashing out annual leave must not be less than the amount that would have been payable had the employee taken the leave at the time the payment is made.

1. The Employer provided an undertaking to address this issue.

Section 190 Undertakings

1. The employer provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Appendix E. 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. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

Section 186, 187, 188 and 190

1. 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.

Section 183 Bargaining Representatives

1. The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it.

1. In accordance with s.201(2), I note that the Agreement covers the AMWU.

Approval

1. The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 17 February 2025. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 July 2027.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

[1] [2023] FWCFB 161.

[2] Ibid.

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