Contract Pharmaceutical Services of Australia Pty Ltd

[2014] FWCA 2224

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

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

Contract Pharmaceutical Services of Australia Pty Ltd
(AG2014/4022)

CPSA EMPLOYEE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014

Pharmaceutical industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT LAWRENCE	SYDNEY, 4 APRIL 2014

Application for approval of the CPSA Employee Enterprise Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the CPSA Employee Enterprise Agreement 2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] The Fair Work Commission notes and accepts the undertaking provided by the employer and it is taken to be a term of the Agreement. A copy of the undertaking is attached to this decision as Annexure A.

[4] The agreement does not contain a consultation term with the content required by s.205(1) and (1A). Accordingly, in accordance with s.205(2), the model consultation term contained in Schedule 2.3 of the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the agreement.

[5] The Agreement is approved. In accordance with s.54(1) it will operate from 11 April 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is11 April 2017.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Annexure A

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicant, Contract Pharmaceutical Services of Australia Pty Ltd, sought approval of the CPSA Employee Enterprise Agreement 2014 from the Fair Work Commission. The application was made under the Fair Work Act 2009, which mandates that certain agreements be registered with the Fair Work Commission before they can be enforced. The nature of the dispute was whether the agreement complied with the legislative requirements and the common law principles governing enterprise agreements.

The legal issues the court was required to decide included whether the agreement was genuinely an enterprise agreement, whether it contained only allowable provisions, and whether it was free from any invalidity. Additionally, the court had to consider whether the agreement was made in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act and whether it complied with the procedural requirements for approval. The court also had to assess whether the agreement met the standards of good faith and whether it was reasonable in terms of its provisions.

The court found that the agreement was genuinely an enterprise agreement, as it was made between the employer and the employees and covered terms and conditions of employment. The agreement contained only allowable provisions, and there were no issues with its invalidity. The court also found that the agreement was made in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act and complied with the procedural requirements for approval. The court was satisfied that the agreement was made in good faith and that its provisions were reasonable. The court approved the CPSA Employee Enterprise Agreement 2014, and the applicant's application was successful.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established