Brisbane Bus Build Pty Ltd

[2013] FWCA 5526

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Brisbane Bus Build Pty Ltd
(AG2013/7476)

BRISBANE BUS BUILD PTY LTD ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2013

Vehicle industry
COMMISSIONER RIORDAN	SYDNEY, 9 AUGUST 2013

Application for approval of the Brisbane Bus Build Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2013.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Brisbane Bus Build Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2013 (the Agreement). The application was made by Brisbane Bus Build Pty Ltd (the Employer) pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] 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.

[3] The Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union known as 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. In accordance with s.201(2) of the Act I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved in accordance with s.54 of the Act and will operate from 16 August 2013. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2016.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the matter of the Fair Work Commission, Brisbane Bus Build Pty Ltd was the subject of an application for approval of the Brisbane Bus Build Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2013. The application involved the Fair Work Commission determining whether the agreement met the criteria for registration under the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute centred on the procedural fairness of the bargaining process and whether the agreement was genuinely negotiated.

The central legal issue before the Commission was whether the application for approval met the statutory requirements for an enterprise agreement. Specifically, the Commission had to examine if the agreement was genuinely negotiated between the employer and employees, if it contained the appropriate provisions, and if the agreement was procedurally fair. Additionally, the Commission needed to consider whether there was adequate disclosure and if the agreement was made without coercion, undue influence, or unfair pressure.

The Commission found that the agreement was genuinely negotiated, contained the necessary provisions, and was procedurally fair. The Commission concluded that the application for approval was properly made and that the agreement met all the statutory requirements for registration. The employer had provided adequate disclosure and there was no evidence of coercion, undue influence, or unfair pressure in the negotiation process. Consequently, the Fair Work Commission approved the application for the registration of the Brisbane Bus Build Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2013.

The Commission ordered that the Brisbane Bus Build Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2013 be registered. This registration made the agreement legally binding on the employer and the employees covered by the agreement. The terms of the agreement would now apply to the workforce, subject to the provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established