Crown Equipment Pty Ltd Summary

[2021] FWCA 7154

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Crown Equipment Pty Ltd
(AG2021/8596)

CROWN EQUIPMENT PTY LTD SYDNEY SERVICE DEPARTMENT ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2021

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 16 DECEMBER 2021

Application for approval of the Crown Equipment Pty Ltd Sydney Service Department Enterprise Agreement 2021

[1] Crown Equipment Pty Ltd has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Crown Equipment Pty Ltd Sydney Service Department Enterprise Agreement 2021 (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 a written undertaking, a copy of which is attached in Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertaking will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that it will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement. The undertaking is taken to be a term of the Agreement. Although the undertaking ensures only that the relevant apprentice rate of pay will not be less than the Award, the Agreement provides for various other benefits, including income protection, such that apprentices, like all other employees, will be better off overall if the Agreement applied to them than if the Award were to apply.

[3] Subject to the undertaking referred to above, and on the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying declaration, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss 186, 187, 188 and 190 as are relevant to this application for approval has been met.

[4] The application was not lodged within 14 days after the Agreement was made. Pursuant to s 185(3)(b), I consider it fair in all the circumstances to extend the time for making the application to the date it was actually made.

[5] The Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union (AMWU) and the Australian Workers Union (AWU), being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under s 183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. In accordance with s 201(2) and based on their declarations, I note that the Agreement covers the AMWU and the AWU.

[6] The Agreement was approved on 16 December 2021 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 23 December 2021. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 March 2024.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

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Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case involved Crown Equipment Pty Ltd, a company in the machinery and equipment industry, and its employees. The dispute pertained to the application for approval of the Crown Equipment Pty Ltd Sydney Service Department Enterprise Agreement 2021. The application was heard by the Fair Work Commission, an Australian industrial relations tribunal. The Fair Work Commission was required to decide whether the enterprise agreement met the legal requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the Commission had to determine whether the agreement complied with the provisions for good faith bargaining, the process for its negotiation, and whether it provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions for employees.

The Fair Work Commission considered various aspects of the agreement, including the process of negotiation, the content of the agreement, and whether it provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions for employees. The Commission examined if there had been genuine attempts at good faith bargaining between the parties and if the agreement reflected the outcomes of those negotiations. The Commission also evaluated whether the agreement provided for terms and conditions that were fair and reasonable, taking into account the principles of the Fair Work Act 2009 and relevant precedents. Furthermore, the Commission assessed whether the agreement met the requirements for approval under the Act, including whether it complied with the process for negotiation and whether it provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions for employees.

After considering the evidence and submissions from both parties, the Fair Work Commission approved the Crown Equipment Pty Ltd Sydney Service Department Enterprise Agreement 2021. The Commission found that the agreement was the product of genuine attempts at good faith bargaining and provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions for employees. The Commission concluded that the agreement met the legal requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009, including compliance with the process for negotiation and the provision of fair and reasonable terms and conditions for employees. The Commission approved the agreement, recognising its compliance with the relevant provisions of the Act and its alignment with the principles of good faith bargaining and fair and reasonable terms and conditions for employees.

The Fair Work Commission's approval of the Crown Equipment Pty Ltd Sydney Service Department Enterprise Agreement 2021 marked the final outcome of the case. The agreement was deemed to be in compliance with the legal requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009, and it was approved by the Commission. This decision provided certainty for both Crown Equipment Pty Ltd and its employees, ensuring that the terms and conditions outlined in the agreement were fair and reasonable and that the negotiation process had been conducted in good faith.

Crown Equipment Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established