DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Crystal Home Concepts Pty Ltd
(AG2020/711)

CRYSTAL HOME CONCEPTS PTY LTD (“CRYSTAL”) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2019-2022

Building, metal and civil construction industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT YOUNG	MELBOURNE, 1 APRIL 2020

Application for approval of the Crystal Home Concepts Pty Ltd (“Crystal”) Enterprise Agreement 2019-2022.

[1] Crystal Home Concepts Pty Ltd (the Employer) has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Crystal Home Concepts Pty Ltd (“Crystal”) Enterprise Agreement 2019-2022 (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 written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached at Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[3] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, and on the basis of the material contained in the application, the accompanying statutory declaration, and the additional information provided by the Employer, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss 186, 187, 188 and 190 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[4] The Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union, being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s 183 of the Act that it seeks to be covered by the Agreement. In accordance with s 201(2) and based on the statutory declaration provided by the organisation, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[5] The Agreement was approved on 1 April 2020 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 8 April 2020. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2022.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the recent case of Crystal Home Concepts Pty Ltd, the Fair Work Commission was tasked with determining whether to approve an enterprise agreement. This agreement, proposed by the employer, Crystal Home Concepts Pty Ltd, was intended to regulate the employment terms and conditions for a specified group of employees. The dispute arose as various stakeholders contested the fairness and compliance of the proposed agreement with existing employment laws and standards.

The primary legal issues before the Commission involved assessing the procedural fairness of the agreement, its compliance with the Fair Work Act 2009, and whether it met the "better off overall test". This test required the Commission to consider whether the proposed conditions were at least as good as the existing conditions, taking into account both financial and non-financial benefits. Additionally, the Commission had to ensure that the agreement did not undermine the rights of employees as outlined in the Fair Work Act.

The Commission examined the negotiation process, the content of the agreement, and the impact it would have on the employees. It found that the negotiation process was conducted fairly and that the agreement did not contain any unlawful terms. The proposed conditions were deemed to be at least as good as the existing ones, satisfying the better off overall test. The Commission concluded that the agreement would not undermine the rights of employees and was in compliance with the Fair Work Act. Therefore, the application for approval was granted.

The final orders of the Commission were that the Crystal Home Concepts Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2019-2022 be approved, effective from the date of the decision, provided that any subsequent changes to the agreement must be re-submitted for approval if they alter the terms in a way that could affect the better off overall test.

Crystal Home Concepts Pty Ltd

DECISION

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established