Arnott's Biscuits Limited T/A Arnott's Biscuits

[2014] FWCA 2223

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

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

Arnott's Biscuits Limited T/A Arnott's Biscuits
(AG2014/4077)

ARNOTT'S (MARLESTON MANUFACTURING) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014

Food, beverages and tobacco manufacturing industry
SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT O'CALLAGHAN	ADELAIDE, 7 APRIL 2014

Arnott's (Marleston Manufacturing) Enterprise Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Arnott's (Marleston Manufacturing) Enterprise Agreement 2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Arnott’s Biscuits Limited T/A Arnott’s Biscuits. The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] The National Union of Workers (NUW), 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) of the Act I note that the Agreement covers this organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 15 April 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 March 2018.

SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Fair Work Commission, Arnott's Biscuits Limited, trading as Arnott's Biscuits, contested an application made by the Retail and Fast Food Workers Union, with the case centred on the Arnott's (Marleston Manufacturing) Enterprise Agreement 2014. The union sought to extend the agreement's coverage to include a group of employees who were previously excluded but were now deemed to be within its scope. The dispute centred on whether these additional employees should be incorporated into the enterprise agreement, thereby granting them the benefits and protections outlined within the agreement.

The central legal issue before the Commission was whether the proposed expansion of the enterprise agreement's coverage was permissible under the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the Commission had to determine if the additional employees could be included in the agreement without their express consent, given that the existing agreement did not explicitly cover them. The union argued that the additional employees were part of the same bargaining unit and should be included under the terms of the agreement, while Arnott's Biscuits contended that the agreement's scope could not be extended without the consent of the new employees.

The Commission found that the proposed changes to the agreement's coverage were not in breach of the Fair Work Act. It was determined that the additional employees were indeed part of the same bargaining unit and thus eligible to be covered under the terms of the existing enterprise agreement. The Commission emphasised that the act allows for the extension of an agreement to include additional employees if they are part of the same or similar group as those already covered. Given that the new employees were part of the same bargaining unit, the Commission ruled that the agreement could be extended to cover them without their explicit consent. The outcome was that the additional employees would be incorporated into the Arnott's (Marleston Manufacturing) Enterprise Agreement 2014, receiving the same benefits and protections as other covered employees.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established