“Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU)

[2013] FWCA 7809

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

“Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU)
(AG2013/9662)

AMWU AND BRENCO SURFACE ENGINEERING & BRENCO AEROSPACE P/L COLLECTIVE BARGAINING WORKSHOP AGREEMENT 2013-2016

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER RYAN	MELBOURNE, 4 OCTOBER 2013

Application for approval of the AMWU and Brenco Surface Engineering & Brenco Aerospace P/L Collective Bargaining Workshop Agreement 2013-2016.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the AMWU and Brenco Surface Engineering & Brenco Aerospace P/L Collective Bargaining Workshop Agreement 2013-2016 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) and was made by “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU). 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] 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.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54(1), will operate from 11 October 2013. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 July 2016.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) made an application to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the AMWU and Brenco Surface Engineering & Brenco Aerospace P/L Collective Bargaining Workshop Agreement 2013-2016. The parties involved in the agreement were the AMWU and Brenco Surface Engineering & Brenco Aerospace P/L, which are parties to a collective agreement. The nature of the dispute involved the terms and conditions of employment within the Brenco companies and the application sought to ensure that these terms met the legal standards for a fair and equitable agreement.

The legal issues that the court had to decide included whether the agreement contained all the mandatory terms required by the Fair Work Act 2009 and whether the agreement had been made in good faith and without coercion. The court also had to determine whether the agreement was in the best interests of the employees covered by it and whether it provided for a fair and equitable resolution of the terms and conditions of employment.

The court found that the agreement met all the mandatory requirements set out in the Fair Work Act 2009. The court also found that the agreement had been made in good faith and without coercion, and that it was in the best interests of the employees covered by it. The court was satisfied that the agreement provided for a fair and equitable resolution of the terms and conditions of employment and approved the agreement. The court noted that the agreement contained provisions for minimum rates of pay, penalties for breach of the agreement, and dispute resolution mechanisms, all of which were in line with the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009.

The court's final orders approved the AMWU and Brenco Surface Engineering & Brenco Aerospace P/L Collective Bargaining Workshop Agreement 2013-2016. The court noted that the agreement was fair and reasonable and provided for a satisfactory resolution of the terms and conditions of employment between the parties. The court also noted that the agreement was in the best interests of the employees covered by it and provided for a fair and equitable outcome for all parties involved.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established