DECISION

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

Common Equity Housing Limited
(AG2015/1189)

COMMON EQUITY HOUSING LIMITED ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2015

Social, community, home care and disability services
COMMISSIONER HAMPTON	ADELAIDE, 3 JUNE 2015

Application for approval of the Common Equity Housing Limited Enterprise Agreement 2015.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Common Equity Housing Limited Enterprise Agreement 2015 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) by Common Equity Housing Limited. The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

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

[3] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 10 June 2015. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2018.

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

Common Equity Housing Limited was the subject of an application for the approval of an enterprise agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The matter was heard in the Fair Work Commission. The application involved the terms and conditions of employment for a specified group of employees, including their pay rates, hours of work, and other employment conditions. The dispute centred on whether the proposed agreement met the criteria for approval under the Act.

The primary legal issue before the Commission was whether the enterprise agreement complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009, particularly in relation to the procedural fairness and the substantive fairness of the agreement. Procedural fairness required that the agreement had been genuinely bargained between the parties and that the employees had been adequately informed and consulted. Substantive fairness required that the agreement's terms were fair and reasonable in all the circumstances, including in relation to the employees' pay and conditions.

In determining the matter, the Commission examined the process by which the agreement was negotiated and the content of the agreement itself. The Commission found that the process was procedurally fair, as there was evidence of genuine bargaining and adequate consultation with the employees. The Commission also found that the terms of the agreement were substantively fair, as they provided for reasonable pay and conditions for the employees, taking into account the nature of the work and the financial capacity of the employer. The Commission approved the enterprise agreement, subject to certain conditions and modifications to ensure compliance with the Fair Work Act 2009.

Common Equity Housing Limited

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established