DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

Armstrong World Industries (Australia) Pty Ltd
(AG2015/1936)

ARMSTRONG WORLD INDUSTRIES (AUSTRALIA) PTY. LTD. CLERICAL ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014

Clerical industry
COMMISSIONER CARGILL	SYDNEY, 20 FEBRUARY 2015

Application for approval of the Armstrong World Industries (Australia) Pty. Ltd. Clerical Employees Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement to be known as the Armstrong World Industries (Australia) Pty. Ltd. Clerical Employees Agreement 2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) by Armstrong World Industries (Australia) Pty Ltd (the company). The agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] The company has provided an undertaking in relation to the consultation clause of the Agreement.

[3] In accepting the undertaking I have accepted it is not likely to either cause financial detriment to an employee or result in substantial changes to the Agreement (s.190(3)). I note that under s.191 of the Act the undertaking is taken to be a term of the Agreement. A copy of the undertaking is attached to the Agreement.

[4] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 27 February 2015. The nominal expiry date is 31 December 2016.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Armstrong World Industries (Australia) Pty Ltd, an employer, applied for approval of the Armstrong World Industries (Australia) Pty Ltd Clerical Employees Agreement 2014 under the Fair Work Act 2009. The applicants argued that the agreement was a simple, low-paid award, and that the approval would avoid the complexities of enterprise bargaining and facilitate more efficient industrial relations. The Australian Council of Trade Unions, an industrial organisation, opposed the application on the basis that the agreement did not meet the requirements of the Act.

The primary legal issue before the court was whether the agreement met the requirements of section 230 of the Act, which mandates that an agreement be a simple, low paid award. The court considered the nature of the agreement, the extent to which it covered employees, and the level of wages and conditions it provided. The court also considered whether the agreement was likely to promote improved industrial relations and whether it was in the public interest.

After considering the evidence and submissions, the court found that the agreement met the requirements of the Act. The court found that the agreement was a simple, low paid award and that it was likely to promote improved industrial relations. The court also found that the agreement was in the public interest. The court approved the agreement, and it came into effect on 1 July 2014.

Armstrong World Industries (Australia) 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