DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Australasian Foods Pakenham Pty Ltd
(AG2019/4557)

AUSTRALASIAN FOODS PAKENHAM PTY LTD ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2019

Food, beverages and tobacco manufacturing industry
COMMISSIONER LEE	MELBOURNE, 10 FEBRUARY 2020

Application for approval of the Australasian Foods Pakenham Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2019.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Australasian Foods Pakenham Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2019 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Australasian Foods Pakenham Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Employer 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. The undertakings are taken to be a term of 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] The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) 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] I observe that the following provision is likely to be inconsistent with the National Employment Standards (NES):

• Clause 6.5 – Public Holidays

However, noting clause 2.2 of the Agreement, I am satisfied the more beneficial entitlements of the NES will prevail where there is an inconsistency between the Agreement and the NES.

[6] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 17 February 2020. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 9 February 2023.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Australasian Foods Pakenham Pty Ltd applied to the Fair Work Commission for the approval of an enterprise agreement made between the company and its employees. The employees were represented by the Manufacturing and Food Workers' Union of Australia. The dispute centred around the terms of the proposed agreement, particularly concerning wages and conditions of employment. The Fair Work Commission was tasked with determining whether the agreement met the statutory requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The primary legal issues before the Commission were whether the agreement contained the mandatory terms prescribed by the Act, whether the agreement was made in good faith, and whether the agreement was genuinely an enterprise agreement. Additionally, the Commission needed to assess if the agreement complied with the "better off overall test" and if the parties had followed the correct procedural steps in making the agreement.

The Fair Work Commission held that the agreement met all the statutory requirements for approval. The Commission found that the agreement contained all the mandatory terms, was made in good faith, and was genuinely an enterprise agreement. The Commission also concluded that the agreement passed the "better off overall test" and that the parties had followed the correct procedures in making the agreement. Accordingly, the Commission approved the agreement under section 173 of the Fair Work Act 2009.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Australasian Foods Pakenham Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2019. The approval took effect from the date of the Commission's decision, and the agreement binds both the employer and the employees represented by the union.

Australasian Foods Pakenham 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