DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Attwood Child Care Centre and Kindergarten Incorporated Association T/A Attwood Child Care Centre and Kindergarten
(AG2016/1236)

ATTWOOD CHILD CARE CENTRE & KINDERGARTEN ASSOCIATION INC. AGREEMENT 2016

Children’s services
COMMISSIONER ROE	MELBOURNE, 28 JUNE 2016

Application for approval of the Attwood Child Care Centre & Kindergarten Association Inc. Agreement 2016.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Attwood Child Care Centre & Kindergarten Association Inc. 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 Attwood Child Care Centre and Kindergarten Incorporated Association T/A Attwood Child Care Centre and Kindergarten. 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.

[3] Pursuant to s.205(2) of the Act, the model consultation term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[4] The Agreement was approved on 28 June 2016 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 5 July 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

The applicant, Attwood Child Care Centre and Kindergarten Incorporated Association trading as Attwood Child Care Centre and Kindergarten, applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Attwood Child Care Centre & Kindergarten Association Inc. Agreement 2016. The dispute arose due to disagreements over the terms and conditions of employment for employees within the childcare sector, specifically focusing on the application of the Childcare and Early Childhood Learning Award 2010. The Commission was tasked with determining whether the proposed agreement met the legal requirements and was in the best interests of the employees.

The primary legal issues that the Commission had to address included whether the proposed agreement complied with the Fair Work Act 2009, particularly in terms of the provisions relating to the modern awards, and whether it provided a safety net of minimum terms and conditions of employment for the employees. Additionally, the Commission needed to consider if the agreement provided for a fair and reasonable balance between the rights and interests of the employer and the employees.

In delivering its decision, the Commission examined the provisions of the proposed agreement against the Childcare and Early Childhood Learning Award 2010. The Commission found that the agreement included terms that were more favourable to the employees than the award, thus meeting the requirement of providing a safety net of minimum terms and conditions. Furthermore, the Commission determined that the agreement achieved a fair and reasonable balance between the rights and interests of the employer and the employees, and was therefore in the best interests of the employees. Consequently, the Commission approved the agreement.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Attwood Child Care Centre & Kindergarten Association Inc. Agreement 2016, determining that it met the legal requirements under the Fair Work Act 2009 and was in the best interests of the employees. The approval of the agreement ensures that employees of the Attwood Child Care Centre and Kindergarten Incorporated Association are provided with a fair and reasonable balance of terms and conditions of employment.

Attwood Child Care Centre and Kindergarten Incorporated Association T/A Attwood Child Care Centre and Kindergarten

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established