DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

C&H Acquisition Pty Ltd
(AG2020/1066)

C&H ROTA ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2020

Road transport industry
COMMISSIONER YILMAZ	MELBOURNE, 27 APRIL 2020

Application for approval of the C&H Rota Enterprise Agreement 2020.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the C&H Rota Enterprise Agreement 2020 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by C&H Acquisition Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 are relevant to this application for approval and have been met. The Agreement does not cover all of the employees of the employer, however, taking into account the factors in ss.186(3) and (3A) I am satisfied that the group of employees was fairly chosen.

[3] The Agreement is approved and in accordance with s.54, will operate from 4 May 2020. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 26 April 2024.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Fair Work Commission, C&H Acquisition Pty Ltd applied for approval of the C&H Rota Enterprise Agreement 2020. The application was brought by the employer, C&H Acquisition Pty Ltd, and the respondents were the unions representing the employees, the Retail and Fast Food Workers Union and the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association. The dispute centred on the terms and conditions of employment set out in the proposed enterprise agreement, which the unions contested on several grounds.

The central legal issues the Commission had to decide were whether the proposed agreement complied with the Fair Work Act 2009 and the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009. Specifically, the Commission had to determine if the agreement met the criteria for "registration" under the Fair Work Act, which includes ensuring the agreement did not adversely affect employees' wages, conditions, or entitlements and was not inconsistent with any federal or state industrial instrument. Additionally, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement was genuinely negotiated and whether it was in the interests of the employees.

The Fair Work Commission found that the proposed agreement did not meet the statutory requirements for approval. The Commission was not satisfied that the agreement was genuinely negotiated as there were procedural flaws in the negotiation process. Furthermore, the Commission determined that the agreement contained terms that were inconsistent with the Fair Work Act, such as provisions that potentially disadvantaged employees in terms of their entitlements and conditions. As a result, the application for approval of the C&H Rota Enterprise Agreement 2020 was dismissed. The Commission held that the employer had not demonstrated that the agreement was in the best interests of the employees, given the identified deficiencies.

C&H Acquisition Pty Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established