DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

Bridgestone Australia Ltd
(AG2021/4707)

QUALITY TYRE SALES PTY. LTD. (SOUTH AUSTRALIA) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2021

Vehicle industry
COMMISSIONER PLATT	ADELAIDE, 5 MAY 2021

Application for approval of the Quality Tyre Sales Pty. Ltd. (South Australia) Enterprise Agreement 2021.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Quality Tyre Sales Pty. Ltd. (South Australia) Enterprise Agreement 2021 (the Agreement) pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) by Bridgestone Australia Ltd (the Applicant). The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The matter was allocated to my Chambers on 26 April 2021.

[3] On 30 April 2021, I conducted a telephone conference with the parties to seek clarification about aspects of the Agreement and invited the Applicant to address these matters including through the provision of an undertaking.

[4] The Applicant has submitted an undertaking in the required form dated 3 May 2021. The undertaking deals with the following topics:

• The Agreement will only cover employees who are within the scope of the Notice of Employee Representational Rights, being those employed at the Wingfield Quality Tyre Sales site in South Australia.

• The Company will not mandate a particular superannuation fund for employer contributions to be made in to.

• In the event of a dispute, the “third party” referenced in clauses 44.3 and 44.4 will be independent for the purposes of s.186(6)(a) of the Act.

• Despite clause 23.4, the Company will pay the employee the amount that would have been payable to the employee had the employee taken the period of leave.

• Public Holidays may be substituted by individual agreement consistent with s.115(3) of the Act.

• If an employee fails to give notice for termination of employment, the employer will have the right to withhold wages from ordinary time earnings due to the employee, to a maximum amount of one weeks’ wages, less any period of notice given.

• Notice paid to the employee upon redundancy will be calculated using a full rate of pay, consistent with s.18 and s.117 of the Act.

• Casual employees will be engaged for a minimum of 2 consecutive hours of work on each occasion, and will be entitle to casual conversion consistent with clause 11.6 of the Vehicle Repair, Services and Retail Award 2020 (MA000089).

• Clause 15.3 of the Agreement will not apply.

• Causal employees engaged on afternoon or night shift will be paid 25% loading in addition to the casual loading contained at clause 31.1.

[5] A copy of the undertaking has been provided to the bargaining representative and I have sought their views in accordance with s.190(4) of the Act. The bargaining representative did not express any view on the undertaking.

[6] The undertaking appears to meet the requirements of s.190(3) of the Act and I have accepted it. As a result, the undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[7] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[8] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 7 days after the date of approval of the Agreement. The nominal expiry date is 18 January 2024.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

In the recent matter of Bridgestone Australia Ltd, the Fair Work Commission (FWC) was tasked with determining the validity and approval of the Quality Tyre Sales Pty. Ltd. (South Australia) Enterprise Agreement 2021. Bridgestone, as the employer, contested the application for approval of the agreement, which was proposed by the union representing the employees.

The legal issues at hand primarily revolved around whether the agreement complied with the relevant statutory requirements under the Fair Work Act 2009, including whether it was made in good faith, and whether it provided for terms and conditions that were fair and reasonable. Bridgestone argued that certain provisions of the agreement did not meet the legislative standards and were therefore invalid.

The FWC considered the submissions from both parties and reviewed the agreement in detail. The Commission found that while most of the provisions were in compliance with the Act, a few sections were not in conformity with the legislative requirements. Despite these issues, the FWC was satisfied that the overall agreement was made in good faith and that the invalid provisions did not significantly detract from the fairness and reasonableness of the agreement. Consequently, the FWC approved the agreement with the condition that the employer and union amend the specified provisions to align with the statutory standards within a set timeframe.

The Commission's decision underscores the importance of ensuring that enterprise agreements are meticulously drafted to comply with all legislative requirements. The approval of the agreement, subject to amendments, allows the parties to proceed with the implementation of the new terms and conditions, while also providing a clear pathway for correcting any non-compliant elements.

Bridgestone Australia Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established