DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Barossa Village Inc
(AG2016/5097)

BAROSSA VILLAGE INC NURSING EMPLOYEES (AGED CARE) & ANMF ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016

Health and welfare services
COMMISSIONER GREGORY	MELBOURNE, 27 SEPTEMBER 2016

Application for approval of the Barossa Village Inc Nursing Employees (Aged Care) & ANMF Enterprise Agreement 2016.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Barossa Village Inc Nursing Employees (Aged Care) & ANMF Enterprise Agreement 2016 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Barossa Village Inc. 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, 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 4 October 2016. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 January 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Barossa Village Inc applied for approval of an enterprise agreement for its nursing employees. The application was made to the Fair Work Commission. The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF) represented the employees. The dispute centred on whether the proposed agreement complied with the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009. The court had to determine if the agreement met the requirements for being a lawful and fair enterprise agreement.

The legal issues before the court included whether the agreement provided for a fair and effective process for resolving disputes and whether the agreement complied with the good faith bargaining provisions. The court examined the process by which the agreement was negotiated and whether the agreement was in the best interests of the employees. The court also considered whether the agreement contained all the mandatory terms required by the Fair Work Act.

The Fair Work Commission approved the application, finding that the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and complied with the statutory requirements. The commission found that the negotiation process was fair and that the agreement contained all the mandatory terms. The commission was satisfied that the agreement provided for an effective process for resolving disputes and that it was made in good faith. The commission found that the agreement was not contrary to public policy and was therefore an appropriate agreement for approval.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Barossa Village Inc Nursing Employees (Aged Care) & ANMF Enterprise Agreement 2016. The court found that the agreement was a lawful and fair enterprise agreement and ordered that it be approved.

Barossa Village Inc

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established