DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Ballarat District Nursing and Healthcare Inc T/A BDNH Group
(AG2016/5816)

BALLARAT AND DISTRICT NURSING AND HEALTHCARE NURSES ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016-2019

Health and welfare services
COMMISSIONER CRIBB	MELBOURNE, 20 SEPTEMBER 2016

Application for approval of the Ballarat and District Nursing and Healthcare Nurses Enterprise Agreement 2016-2019.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Ballarat and District Nursing and Healthcare Nurses 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 Ballarat District Nursing and Healthcare Inc T/A BDNH Group. 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 Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF) 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) of the Act 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 27 September 2016. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 March 2019.

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case before the Fair Work Commission was an application for the approval of the Ballarat and District Nursing and Healthcare Nurses Enterprise Agreement 2016-2019. The applicants, Ballarat District Nursing and Healthcare Inc trading as BDNH Group, sought to have the agreement recognised as a Registered Organisation Agreement, a status that would confer upon it a higher level of protection and enforceability under the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute arose from the negotiation and subsequent approval of the agreement between the employer and the registered union representing the nursing staff.

The legal issues that the Commission was required to decide included whether the agreement met the statutory requirements for registration, including whether it was in writing, was made between a registered organisation and a registered union, and contained only matters that were bargainable. Furthermore, the Commission needed to determine if the agreement was made in good faith and if it complied with the procedural fairness requirements of the Act. Additionally, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement was fair and reasonable in its terms and whether it provided for an appropriate mechanism for the resolution of disputes.

In reaching its decision, the Commission considered the evidence presented by both parties, including submissions on the process of negotiation, the content of the agreement, and the compliance with the statutory requirements. The Commission found that the agreement was in writing and that it was made between the employer and the union, with the union representing the employees. The Commission also concluded that the agreement contained only matters that were bargainable and that it had been made in good faith. The Commission noted the procedural fairness of the negotiation process and found that the agreement was fair and reasonable in its terms. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement provided for an appropriate mechanism for the resolution of disputes. Therefore, the Commission approved the agreement as a Registered Organisation Agreement.

Ballarat District Nursing and Healthcare Inc T/A BDNH Group

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established