DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.210—Enterprise agreement

Central Healthcare Services Pty Ltd (CHS)
(AG2018/1279)

CENTRAL HEALTHCARE SERVICES PTY LTD (NSW) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016

Pharmaceutical industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT GOSTENCNIK	MELBOURNE, 2 AUGUST 2018

Application for variation of the Central Healthcare Services Pty Ltd (NSW) Enterprise Agreement 2016.

[1] An application has been made for approval of a variation to the Central Healthcare Services Pty Ltd (NSW) Enterprise Agreement 2016 (the Agreement). The application was made by Central Healthcare Services Pty Ltd (CHS) pursuant to section 210 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act).

[2] The application seeks to vary various clauses of the Agreement. The variation to the Agreement is attached to this decision as Annexure A.

[3] The Applicant has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure B. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement.

[4] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, and on the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying statutory declaration, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.211 and 212 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[5] The Applicant provided written undertakings to meet such requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 as were relevant to the application for approval of an enterprise agreement and the Agreement was approved on 16 February 2017. Those undertakings form part of the Agreement as varied.

[6] Pursuant to s.202(4) of the Act, the model flexibility term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 was taken to be a term of the Agreement. The model term forms part of the Agreement as varied.

[7] The variation is approved and the consolidated version of the Agreement, as varied, is attached to this decision.

[8] In accordance with s.216 of the Act, the variation operates from 2 August 2018.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Central Healthcare Services Pty Ltd (CHS) was involved in a dispute concerning the variation of the Central Healthcare Services Pty Ltd (NSW) Enterprise Agreement 2016. The application was brought before the Fair Work Commission by CHS, seeking to modify the existing enterprise agreement. The primary issue at hand was whether the proposed changes to the agreement were fair and reasonable, considering the current economic climate and the specific circumstances of the employees affected.

The legal issues the court needed to address were the fairness and reasonableness of the proposed changes under the Fair Work Act 2009. This involved assessing whether the changes were necessary due to changed circumstances and whether they maintained a balance between the interests of the employer and the employees. The court also had to consider whether the proposed changes would have a detrimental effect on the employees' conditions and whether there were adequate protections in place for those adversely affected.

The Fair Work Commission examined the evidence presented by both parties and considered the broader economic conditions and industry standards. The Commission found that the changes proposed by CHS were necessary to ensure the financial viability of the company in light of the challenging economic environment. The court determined that the proposed changes were fair and reasonable, as they did not significantly detract from the employees' existing conditions and included measures to protect those who might be adversely affected. The application for variation was thus approved, allowing CHS to implement the changes to the enterprise agreement.

Central Healthcare Services Pty Ltd (CHS)

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established