DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Bushmans Group Pty Limited T/A Bushman Tanks
(AG2014/10720)

BUSHMANS GROUP PTY LIMITED NEW SOUTH WALES FACTORY WORKERS ENTERPRISE BARGAINING AGREEMENT 2014-2017

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER BLAIR	MELBOURNE, 27 FEBRUARY 2015

Application for approval of the Bushmans Group Pty Limited New South Wales Factory Workers Enterprise Bargaining Agreement 2014-2017.

[1] An application has been made for approval of a single-enterprise agreement known as the Bushmans Group Pty Limited New South Wales Factory Workers Enterprise Bargaining 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 Bushmans Group Pty Limited t/as Bushman Tanks (the Applicant).

[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] Pursuant to s.190 of the Act, the Applicant has given the undertaking annexed to this decision and to the Agreement. In accordance with ss. 191(1) and 201(3) of the Act I note that the undertaking is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 6 March 2015. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 26 February 2018

ANNEXURE A

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case of Bushmans Group Pty Limited T/A Bushman Tanks involved an application for the approval of a particular enterprise bargaining agreement, specifically the Bushmans Group Pty Limited New South Wales Factory Workers Enterprise Bargaining Agreement 2014-2017. This application was brought before the Fair Work Commission. The agreement in question was submitted by the employer, Bushmans Group Pty Limited, seeking its formal recognition and enforcement. The agreement was intended to govern the terms and conditions of employment for factory workers within the New South Wales jurisdiction, for a period spanning from 2014 to 2017.

The primary legal issues that the Commission needed to address were whether the agreement was genuinely an enterprise bargaining agreement, whether it complied with the requirements set forth in the Fair Work Act 2009, and whether it met the "better off overall test" which ensures that employees are not worse off financially as a result of the agreement. Additionally, the Commission had to determine whether the agreement appropriately covered a defined group of employees and whether it contained all the necessary provisions as stipulated by the Act.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement was indeed an enterprise bargaining agreement as it was made between the employer and a representative of the employees. The Commission assessed that the agreement met all the statutory requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009, including the coverage of a defined group of employees and the inclusion of necessary provisions. Importantly, the Commission also concluded that the agreement passed the "better off overall test" as it provided employees with benefits that were at least as good as those available under the applicable award or previous agreements. Consequently, the Commission approved the agreement, deeming it to be a valid and enforceable enterprise bargaining agreement.

The final orders of the Commission were that the Bushmans Group Pty Limited New South Wales Factory Workers Enterprise Bargaining Agreement 2014-2017 was approved and registered under the Fair Work Act 2009, effective from the date of the decision. This approval meant that the agreement would govern the terms and conditions of employment for the specified period, subject to the rights and obligations set out in the Act.

Bushmans Group Pty Limited T/A Bushman Tanks

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established