Chep Australia Limited Summary

[2023] FWCA 568

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Chep Australia Limited

(AG2023/209)

CHEP North Melbourne (VIC) Service Centre ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2022

Storage services
COMMISSIONER MCKINNON	SYDNEY, 22 FEBRUARY 2023

Application for approval of the CHEP North Melbourne (VIC) Service Centre Enterprise Agreement 2022

Chep Australia Limited has applied for approval of a single enterprise agreement known as the CHEP North Melbourne (VIC) Service Centre Enterprise Agreement 2022 (the Agreement).

I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Fair Work Act 2009 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

The Agreement is approved and will operate from 1 March 2023. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 December 2024.

The Agreement covers the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

The case before the Fair Work Commission was an application by Chep Australia Limited for approval of the CHEP North Melbourne (VIC) Service Centre Enterprise Agreement 2022. The application was brought by Chep Australia Limited, a logistics company, seeking to have the enterprise agreement, which it had negotiated with the Transport Workers Union, approved by the Commission. The union represented employees of the company who worked at the North Melbourne service centre. The dispute centred on whether the agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009 for enterprise agreements to be approved by the Commission.

The central legal issue before the Commission was whether the enterprise agreement complied with the procedural and substantive requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009. Procedurally, the agreement had to be made through a genuine bargaining process, and substantively, it had to meet the 'better off overall test' (BOOT), ensuring that employees were not disadvantaged by the agreement. The Commission had to examine the bargaining process to confirm that it was genuine and not coerced, and it also had to determine if the terms of the agreement provided employees with a fair balance of benefits and detriments.

The Commission found that the bargaining process was genuine, as evidenced by the documentation and testimonies provided by both parties. The terms of the agreement were also examined to assess whether they met the BOOT. The Commission determined that the agreement did not disadvantage employees and provided them with a fair balance of benefits and detriments. Consequently, the Commission approved the CHEP North Melbourne (VIC) Service Centre Enterprise Agreement 2022, finding it to be in compliance with the relevant legislative provisions.

In approving the enterprise agreement, the Commission made an order that the CHEP North Melbourne (VIC) Service Centre Enterprise Agreement 2022 be approved as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. This order effectively formalises the agreement as a legally binding contract between Chep Australia Limited and the Transport Workers Union, governing the terms and conditions of employment for the employees at the North Melbourne service centre.

Chep Australia Limited

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established