Australian Vintage Limited

[2014] FWCA 6856

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Australian Vintage Limited
(AG2014/7467)

AUSTRALIAN VINTAGE LIMITED - MERBEIN WORKSHOP ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER RYAN	MELBOURNE, 30 SEPTEMBER 2014

Application for approval of the Australian Vintage Limited - Merbein Workshop Enterprise Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Australian Vintage Limited - Merbein Workshop Enterprise Agreement 2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) and was made by Australian Vintage Limited. The agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] Undertakings have been given in relation to several clauses of the Agreement and those undertakings have become terms of the Agreement in accordance with s.191(1) of the Act and are appended at Appendix A.

[3] Pursuant to s.190(4) of the Act, I have sought the views of the “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) and the AMWU has supported the undertakings.

[4] Subject to those undertakings, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[5] 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. As required by s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[6] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54(1), will operate from 7 October 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2016.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

APPENDIX A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Australian Vintage Limited, an entity involved in the wine production industry, applied to the Fair Work Commission for the approval of the Australian Vintage Limited - Merbein Workshop Enterprise Agreement 2014. The dispute arose from disagreements regarding the terms and conditions of employment for certain employees within the company's Merbein Workshop. The Fair Work Commission was tasked with determining whether the agreement met the necessary requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The primary legal issues that the Commission had to address were whether the agreement contained all the prescribed minimum terms, whether it was free from prohibited content, and whether it complied with the good faith bargaining requirements. Furthermore, the Commission needed to assess whether the agreement had been genuinely negotiated and whether it was appropriate to make an order approving the agreement under the Fair Work Act.

The Fair Work Commission, after a detailed examination of the agreement, determined that it contained all the prescribed minimum terms and was free from prohibited content. The Commission found that the agreement was the product of genuine negotiations and met the good faith bargaining requirements. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement was fair and appropriate for the employees involved. Therefore, the Commission approved the agreement, and an order was made under section 234 of the Fair Work Act 2009 for the approval of the Australian Vintage Limited - Merbein Workshop Enterprise Agreement 2014.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established