DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Australian Wool Testing Authority Limited
(AG2014/8444)

AUSTRALIAN WOOL TESTING AUTHORITY LIMITED COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT 2014

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER RYAN	MELBOURNE, 16 DECEMBER 2014

Application for approval of the Australian Wool Testing Authority Limited Collective Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Australian Wool Testing Authority Limited Collective 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 Wool Testing Authority Limited. The agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

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

[3] Undertakings have been givenin relation to clauses 6.10 and 10.3.5 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.

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

[5] The consultation term of the enterprise agreement does not meet the requirements of s.205(1) and (1A) of the Fair Work Act as amended as from 1 January 2014. Therefore in accordance with the requirement of s.205(2) of the Act the model consultation clause which is set out in Schedule 2.3 of the Fair Work Regulations is taken to be a term of the agreement. The model consultation clause is attached at Appendix B.

[6] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54(1), will operate from 23 December 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2016.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

APPENDIX A

APPENDIX B

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter involved an application by the Australian Wool Testing Authority Limited (AWTA) to the Fair Work Commission (FWC) for the approval of the Australian Wool Testing Authority Limited Collective Agreement 2014. The application was made by the employer, and the Fair Work Ombudsman opposed the approval. The dispute centred on whether the proposed collective agreement complied with the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009.

The key legal issues before the FWC were whether the proposed agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act, including compliance with the general protections provisions, and whether the agreement contained any provisions that were contrary to public policy or that otherwise failed to meet the standards of procedural fairness.

The FWC considered the provisions of the Fair Work Act and the arguments presented by both parties. The FWC determined that the proposed agreement substantially complied with the requirements of the Act. The FWC was satisfied that the agreement did not contain any provisions that were contrary to public policy or that failed to meet the standards of procedural fairness. Consequently, the FWC approved the proposed agreement.

In conclusion, the FWC approved the Australian Wool Testing Authority Limited Collective Agreement 2014, finding that it complied with the Fair Work Act and did not contain any objectionable provisions. This decision ensures that the collective agreement is legally binding and can be enforced in accordance with the terms set out within the agreement.

Australian Wool Testing Authority Limited

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established