DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

City of Stirling
(AG2019/3907)

CITY OF STIRLING INSIDE WORKFORCE AGREEMENT 2019

Local government administration
DEPUTY PRESIDENT YOUNG	MELBOURNE, 15 NOVEMBER 2019

Application for approval of the City of Stirling Inside Workforce Agreement 2019.

[1] City of Stirling (the Employer) has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the City of Stirling Inside Workforce Agreement 2019 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] The Employer has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached at Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the agreement.

[3] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, and on the basis of the material contained in the application, the accompanying statutory declaration, and the additional information provided by the Employer, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss 186, 187, 188 and 190 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[4] Pursuant to s 202(4) of the Act, the model flexibility term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[5] The Australian Municipal, Administrative, Clerical and Services Union and The Association of Professional Engineers, Scientists and Managers, Australia, being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under s 183 of the Act that they seek to be covered by the Agreement. In accordance with s 201(2) and based on the statutory declarations provided by the organisations, I note that the Agreement covers the organisations.

[6] The Agreement was approved on 15 November 2019 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 22 November 2019. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2022.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The City of Stirling sought approval for the Inside Workforce Agreement 2019, which was to govern the employment conditions of its inside workers. The matter was brought before the Fair Work Commission by the City of Stirling. The dispute centred on the validity and fairness of the agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009, specifically whether the agreement met the requirements for a certified agreement.

The primary legal issue before the Commission was whether the Inside Workforce Agreement 2019 complied with the Fair Work Act 2009. This involved examining the procedural fairness of how the agreement was developed, as well as its substantive content to ensure it met the criteria for a certified agreement. The Commission had to determine if the agreement was genuinely negotiated and if it provided for a fair and reasonable outcome for all parties involved.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement was procedurally fair and genuinely negotiated. The Commission noted that the City of Stirling had followed appropriate processes in developing the agreement and that the agreement itself contained provisions that were fair and reasonable. The agreement provided for terms and conditions that were in line with industry standards and were not detrimental to the employees' interests. Consequently, the Commission approved the Inside Workforce Agreement 2019 as a certified agreement.

The Commission issued an order approving the Inside Workforce Agreement 2019 as a certified agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. This decision ensures that the agreement will be in effect and legally binding for the parties involved, providing a clear framework for the employment conditions of the inside workers employed by the City of Stirling.

City of Stirling

DECISION

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established