DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Bega & District Nursing Home Limted T/A Hillgrove House, Casuarina, Sapphire Coast Home Services
(AG2014/10089)

BEGA & DISTRICT NURSING HOME LTD, NSWNMA AND HSU NSW ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014 - 2017.

Aged care industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT BOOTH	SYDNEY, 9 DECEMBER 2014

Application for approval of the Bega & District Nursing Home Ltd, NSWNMA and HSU NSW Enterprise Agreement 2014 - 2017.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Bega & District Nursing Home Ltd, NSWNMA and HSU NSW Enterprise Agreement 2014 - 2017 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Bega & District Nursing Home Ltd. The agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] The Health Services Union New South Wales Branch, the New South Wales Branch of the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation and the New South Wales Nurses and Midwives’ Association, being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under s.183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. In accordance with s.201(2) of the Act, I note that the Agreement covers these organisations.

[3] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 16 December 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2017.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the court was an application for the approval of the Bega & District Nursing Home Limited T/A Hillgrove House, Casuarina, Sapphire Coast Home Services, NSWNMA and HSU NSW Enterprise Agreement 2014 - 2017. The dispute centred around the terms of the agreement between the employer and the employees, and whether the agreement met the necessary criteria for approval under the relevant industrial legislation. The application was brought before the Fair Work Commission, which has jurisdiction to approve such agreements.

The central legal issues before the Commission were whether the agreement provided for the proper regulation of employees' wages and conditions, whether it met the requirements for proper dispute resolution and whether it contained provisions for the protection of employees' rights and interests. The Commission needed to consider whether the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and whether it met the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009.

The Commission found that the agreement provided for the proper regulation of employees' wages and conditions, and that it contained appropriate provisions for dispute resolution. The Commission also found that the agreement contained provisions for the protection of employees' rights and interests, and that it was in the best interests of the employees. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement met all of the necessary criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

Accordingly, the Commission approved the Bega & District Nursing Home Limited T/A Hillgrove House, Casuarina, Sapphire Coast Home Services, NSWNMA and HSU NSW Enterprise Agreement 2014 - 2017. The agreement is now legally binding on all parties, and will remain in effect until such time as it is replaced by a new agreement or terminated in accordance with the terms of the Fair Work Act 2009.

Bega & District Nursing Home Limted T/A Hillgrove House, Casuarina, Sapphire Coast Home Services

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established