Cryovac Australia Pty Ltd

[2014] FWCA 6853

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Cryovac Australia Pty Ltd
(AG2014/7596)

CRYOVAC AUSTRALIA (FAWKNER SITE) MAINTENANCE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014 - 2018

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER RYAN	MELBOURNE, 30 SEPTEMBER 2014

Application for approval of the Cryovac Australia (Fawkner Site) Maintenance Enterprise Agreement 2014 - 2018.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Cryovac Australia (Fawkner Site) Maintenance Enterprise Agreement 2014 - 2018 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) and was made by Cryovac Australia Pty Ltd. The agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] An undertaking has been given in relation to the Agreement and this undertaking has become a term of the Agreement in accordance with s.191(1) of the Act and is appended at Appendix A.

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

[4] The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) and the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (CEPU), being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under s.183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. As required by s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the AMWU and CEPU.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54(1), will operate from 7 October 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2018.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

APPENDIX A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the matter of Cryovac Australia Pty Ltd, the Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission was tasked with approving the Cryovac Australia (Fawkner Site) Maintenance Enterprise Agreement 2014-2018. The application arose from a dispute between the employer and the union, which sought to have the agreement registered as a single enterprise agreement. The primary concern was whether the agreement appropriately covered all employees of Cryovac Australia Pty Ltd at the Fawkner site, given the employer's contention that the agreement only pertained to maintenance employees.

The court needed to determine whether the proposed agreement was an "enterprise agreement" within the meaning of the Fair Work Act 2009, specifically focusing on the application of section 225 of the Act. This involved assessing whether the agreement covered all employees at the Fawkner site or only a subset of employees, as claimed by the employer. The court had to consider the definitions of "enterprise" and "employees" and whether the agreement met the statutory requirements for registration.

The Full Bench found that the agreement was indeed an enterprise agreement covering all employees at the Fawkner site, not just maintenance employees. The court examined the terms of the agreement and the employer's submissions, concluding that the agreement met the necessary criteria under the Fair Work Act. The court was satisfied that the agreement provided for a fair and reasonable determination of all employees' terms and conditions of employment, thereby complying with the statutory requirements for registration. The application for approval was thus granted, and the agreement was registered as a single enterprise agreement.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established