Complete Office Staffing Pty Limited Summary

[2023] FWCA 1884

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Complete Office Staffing Pty Limited

(AG2023/1723)

COMPLETE OFFICE STAFFING PTY LIMITED ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2023 - 2027

Storage services
DEPUTY PRESIDENT BOYCE	SYDNEY, 26 JUNE 2023

Application for approval of the Complete Office Staffing Pty Limited Enterprise Agreement 2023 - 2027

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement to be known as the Complete Office Staffing Pty Limited Enterprise Agreement 2023 - 2027 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act). It has been made by Complete Office Staffing Pty Limited (Employer). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

Undertakings

The Employer has provided written undertakings dated 23 June 2023. Those undertakings are attached at Annexure A to this decision and become terms of the Agreement. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement (as compared to the relevant provisions of the Storage Services and Wholesale Award 2010), and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement.

Conclusion

Subject to the undertakings referred to above, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 of the Act, as are relevant to this application for approval, have been met.

I am satisfied the more beneficial entitlements of the NES will prevail where there is an inconsistency between the Agreement and the NES.

The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from the Applicant’s first full pay period on or after the date of this decision (being a date that is earlier than 7 days after the date of this decision, and not longer than 14 days after the date of this decision). The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 26 June 2027.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case before the Fair Work Commission involved Complete Office Staffing Pty Limited, a company seeking approval for its Enterprise Agreement 2023-2027. The applicant sought to have the agreement made between the employer and employees, which had been negotiated in good faith, approved as a registered agreement. The matter was brought to the Commission by the employer under section 232 of the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute centred around the terms of the agreement and whether it complied with the statutory requirements of the Act.

The primary legal issues before the Commission were whether the agreement had been made in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act, including whether it was negotiated in good faith, and whether it met the criteria for being a lawful and effective enterprise agreement. The Commission had to consider if the agreement contained minimum terms and conditions, and whether any provisions were contrary to the Act or public policy. Additionally, the Commission needed to determine if the agreement had been made by a certified agreement, or if it was a new agreement that complied with all necessary procedural requirements.

In reaching its decision, the Commission examined the negotiation process and the terms of the agreement. The Commission found that the agreement had been negotiated in good faith and contained all the required minimum terms and conditions as stipulated in the Fair Work Act. The Commission also considered that the agreement was not contrary to public policy or any other provisions of the Act. Having found that the agreement met all the necessary criteria, the Commission approved the Complete Office Staffing Pty Limited Enterprise Agreement 2023-2027 as a registered agreement. The Commission's approval ensures that the terms of the agreement are enforceable, and it will remain in effect until the next scheduled review or until altered by further negotiations.

Complete Office Staffing Pty Limited

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established