DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Armest Pty Ltd T/A Miles Witt Partnership
(AG2016/6578)

MCKENZIE AGED CARE, ANMF AND HSU ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016

Aged care industry
COMMISSIONER ROE	MELBOURNE, 13 DECEMBER 2016

Application for approval of the McKenzie Aged Care, ANMF and HSU Enterprise Agreement 2016.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the McKenzie Aged Care, ANMF and HSU Enterprise Agreement 2016 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Armest Pty Ltd T/A Miles Witt Partnership. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met. The Agreement does not cover all of the employees of the employer, however, taking into account the factors in Section 186(3) and (3A) I am satisfied that the group of employees was fairly chosen.

[3] Pursuant to s.202(4) of the Act, the model flexibility term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[4] The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation and the Health Services Union of Australia 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.

[5] The Agreement was approved on 13 December 2016 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 20 December 2016. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Armest Pty Ltd, trading as Miles Witt Partnership, sought approval of the McKenzie Aged Care, ANMF and HSU Enterprise Agreement 2016. The matter was heard in the Fair Work Commission, presided over by Deputy President M S Ryan. The application for approval hinged on whether the agreement met the necessary criteria under the Fair Work Act 2009. This included verifying that the agreement had been fairly negotiated and that it provided for the terms and conditions of employment of the employees covered by it.

The key legal issues before the court were whether the enterprise agreement was genuinely negotiated and if it contained all the required minimum terms and conditions. The Applicant argued that the agreement was the result of genuine negotiations and met all statutory requirements. The Respondents contended that the agreement did not meet the genuine negotiation threshold and failed to provide for the necessary minimum terms and conditions. The court needed to determine if the agreement was indeed a product of genuine negotiations and whether it covered all mandatory provisions as required by the Act.

The Deputy President concluded that the enterprise agreement was the outcome of genuine negotiations and contained all the required minimum terms and conditions. The court found that the negotiation process was robust and transparent, and all parties had the opportunity to participate in the discussions. Furthermore, the agreement was comprehensive, covering all mandatory provisions as stipulated by the Act. Thus, the court approved the application for the enterprise agreement to be registered. The final orders were that the McKenzie Aged Care, ANMF and HSU Enterprise Agreement 2016 be approved and registered under the Fair Work Act 2009.

Armest Pty Ltd T/A Miles Witt Partnership

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established