DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Bunnings Group Limited T/A Bunnings Warehouse
(AG2020/1617)

BUNNINGS PERTH DISTRIBUTION CENTRE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2019

Storage services
COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS	PERTH, 3 JULY 2020

Application for approval of the Bunnings Perth Distribution Centre Enterprise Agreement 2019.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Bunnings Perth Distribution Centre Enterprise Agreement 2019 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Bunnings Group Limited T/A Bunnings Warehouse. 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 Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 10 July 2020. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2022.

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicant, Bunnings Group Limited trading as Bunnings Warehouse, brought an application before the Fair Work Commission (FWC) to approve the Bunnings Perth Distribution Centre Enterprise Agreement 2019. The agreement aimed to regulate the employment conditions of the warehouse workers at the Perth distribution centre. The dispute centred on whether the enterprise agreement complied with the relevant legislative requirements and if it met the standards of good faith bargaining.

The court had to determine if the agreement was genuinely negotiated and if it included the necessary provisions as stipulated by the Fair Work Act 2009. Additionally, the FWC needed to assess if the agreement adequately protected the rights of the employees and whether it provided fair terms and conditions of employment. The court also examined the process of negotiation and whether there was evidence of genuine bargaining between the employer and the employees' representatives.

The FWC found that the agreement was the result of genuine negotiations between the employer and the employees' representatives. The court noted that the agreement included all the mandatory terms and conditions as required by the Fair Work Act 2009 and did not disadvantage the employees. The FWC concluded that the agreement met the standards of good faith bargaining and was fair and reasonable in all its terms. Therefore, the FWC approved the enterprise agreement.

The FWC ordered the approval of the Bunnings Perth Distribution Centre Enterprise Agreement 2019, subject to the conditions and provisions set out in the agreement. The decision was made in the interests of promoting conciliation, arbitration, and the avoidance of industrial disputes. The approval was effective from the date of the decision, and the agreement would govern the employment conditions of the warehouse workers at the Perth distribution centre.

Bunnings Group Limited T/A Bunnings Warehouse

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established