DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Australian Comfort Group Pty Ltd T/A Dunlop Foams & Sleepmaker
(AG2016/4221)

THE AUSTRALIAN COMFORT GROUP (DEER PARK) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016-2019

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER LEE	MELBOURNE, 29 AUGUST 2016

Application for approval of The Australian Comfort Group (Deer Park) Enterprise Agreement 2016-2019.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as The Australian Comfort Group (Deer Park) Enterprise Agreement 2016-2019 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Australian Comfort Group Pty Ltd T/A Dunlop Foams & Sleepmaker. 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] The Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union 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.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 5 September 2016. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 27 August 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Australian Comfort Group Pty Ltd, trading as Dunlop Foams & Sleepmaker, applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Australian Comfort Group (Deer Park) Enterprise Agreement 2016-2019. The applicant argued that the agreement should be approved as it had been negotiated in good faith and met the criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. The Australian Manufacturing Workers Union opposed the application, arguing that the agreement did not meet the requirements for approval as it did not provide for the proper registration of union members and did not adequately address the terms and conditions of employment for the employees covered by the agreement.

The legal issues before the Commission were whether the agreement was negotiated in good faith, whether it complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act, and whether it provided for the proper registration of union members and adequately addressed the terms and conditions of employment for the employees covered by the agreement. The Commission considered the evidence presented by both parties and the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act. The Commission found that the agreement had been negotiated in good faith and met the requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act. The Commission also found that the agreement provided for the proper registration of union members and adequately addressed the terms and conditions of employment for the employees covered by the agreement.

Accordingly, the Fair Work Commission approved the Australian Comfort Group (Deer Park) Enterprise Agreement 2016-2019. The Commission noted that the agreement provided for a number of improvements to the terms and conditions of employment for the employees covered by the agreement, including increased pay rates, improved leave entitlements, and better protection for employees in the event of redundancy. The Commission also noted that the agreement provided for the proper registration of union members and provided for effective mechanisms for the resolution of workplace disputes. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement met the requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act and accordingly approved the agreement.

Australian Comfort Group Pty Ltd T/A Dunlop Foams & Sleepmaker

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established