DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Asahi Beverages Pty Ltd
(AG2017/6719)

ASAHI BEVERAGES IPSWICH PRODUCTION ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2017

Food, beverages and tobacco manufacturing industry
COMMISSIONER SIMPSON	BRISBANE, 16 MARCH 2018

Application for approval of the Asahi Beverages Ipswich Production Enterprise Agreement 2017.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Asahi Beverages Ipswich Production Enterprise Agreement 2017 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Asahi Beverages Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

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

[3] 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.

[4] United Voice 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) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 23 March 2018. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 4 July 2020.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Asahi Beverages Pty Ltd applied to the Fair Work Commission (FWC) for approval of the Asahi Beverages Ipswich Production Enterprise Agreement 2017. The respondents, various unions and employees, challenged the approval on several grounds. The applicants contended that the agreement met all statutory requirements and was in the best interests of the employees.

The central legal issues the FWC had to resolve were whether the agreement was genuinely a product of free and voluntary bargaining, and whether it met the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009. The unions argued that the agreement did not genuinely reflect the terms and conditions of employment and that the process leading to its creation was flawed. They also contended that certain provisions of the agreement were not in the best interests of the employees.

The FWC found that the agreement was genuinely negotiated between the parties and that the process was free from coercion, duress, or any other form of unfair influence. The FWC also concluded that the agreement met all the statutory requirements and was in the best interests of the employees. The FWC rejected the unions' arguments, noting that the evidence did not support the claim of procedural flaws or that the agreement was not genuinely negotiated. The FWC also found that the agreement contained provisions that were fair and reasonable in all the circumstances.

The FWC approved the Asahi Beverages Ipswich Production Enterprise Agreement 2017, finding it met all the necessary statutory requirements and was in the best interests of the employees. The FWC dismissed the respondents' challenge to the agreement's approval.

Asahi Beverages 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