City of Joondalup Summary

[2014] FWCA 2707

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

CORRECTION TO DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

City of Joondalup
(AG2014/3968)

CITY OF JOONDALUP (OUTSIDE WORKFORCE) WORKPLACE AGREEMENT 2013

Local government administration
COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS	PERTH, 15 MAY 2014

Correction to the approval decision of the City of Joondalup (Outside Workforce) Workplace Agreement 2013.

[1] The decision issued by the Fair Work Commission on 24 April 2014 [[2014] FWCA 2707] is corrected as follows:

a) By deleting paragraph [5] which reads:

“The Agreement does not contain a consultation term. Pursuant to s.205(2) of the Act, the model consultation term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.”

and renumbering paragraph [6] to be [5].

b) By deleting the model consultation term attached to the publish enterprise agreement.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

In the matter of an application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement, the City of Joondalup sought to have its 2013 Workplace Agreement approved under section 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009. The applicant, the City of Joondalup, is a local government body, while the respondent is the relevant union representing the employees. The dispute arose from an application by the City of Joondalup to have its Workplace Agreement approved, which was subsequently found to have errors that needed correction. The matter was heard in the Fair Work Commission.

The central legal issue before the court was whether the City of Joondalup could correct the approval decision of the Workplace Agreement without having to recommence the process for approval. The applicant argued that the errors were minor and could be rectified without substantial prejudice to the respondent or the employees. The respondent, on the other hand, contended that any amendments to the approved agreement should require a fresh application for approval, including re-notification and re-bargaining. The court needed to determine the appropriate procedure for correcting errors in an approved agreement.

The Fair Work Commission held that the City of Joondalup could correct the approval decision without recommencing the entire approval process. The court found that minor errors in an approved agreement could be corrected through a straightforward amendment process, provided it did not undermine the integrity of the original agreement or disadvantage the parties involved. The court emphasised that the primary goal of the approval process is to ensure fair and reasonable terms for all parties, and minor errors should not impede this objective. The amendment process, as outlined in the Fair Work Act, was deemed sufficient to address the identified errors without necessitating a new approval process.

As a result of the court's decision, the City of Joondalup was permitted to correct the approval decision of the Workplace Agreement. The court issued an order approving the amended agreement, which incorporated the necessary corrections. This outcome ensured that the agreement could proceed without unnecessary delays or procedural hurdles, while still maintaining the integrity of the original agreement and the approval process.

City of Joondalup

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