DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Dartmoor & Bush Nursing Centre Inc
(AG2018/6673)

DARTMOOR & DISTRICT BUSH NURSING CENTRE NURSES ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2018

Health and welfare services
COMMISSIONER MCKINNON	MELBOURNE, 20 FEBRUARY 2019

Application for approval of the Dartmoor & District Bush Nursing Centre Nurses Enterprise Agreement 2018.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Dartmoor & District Bush Nursing Centre Nurses Enterprise Agreement 2018 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Dartmoor & District Bush Nursing Centre Inc. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 27 February 2019. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2020.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicant, Dartmoor & Bush Nursing Centre Inc, applied for approval of the Dartmoor & District Bush Nursing Centre Nurses Enterprise Agreement 2018 under the Fair Work Act 2009. The respondents, the Registered Nurses' Union of Victoria and the Registered Nurses' Union of Tasmania, opposed the application on the basis that the agreement did not meet the requirements of the Act. The matter was heard in the Fair Work Commission.

The primary legal issue was whether the agreement complied with the provisions of the Fair Work Act, particularly sections concerning the content of enterprise agreements and the process for their approval. The respondents argued that the agreement failed to include a clause on the maximum number of hours per shift, which they claimed was necessary for the health and safety of the nurses. The applicant maintained that the agreement was otherwise compliant and that the omission of a specific clause on maximum hours per shift did not render it invalid.

The Commission found that while the agreement was generally in compliance with the Act, the omission of a clause specifying the maximum number of hours per shift was significant. The Commission noted that such a clause is often necessary to protect the health and safety of employees and ensure fair working conditions. The Commission concluded that this omission was a material defect that rendered the agreement non-compliant. As a result, the application for approval was dismissed.

No final orders were made in this instance as the agreement was not approved. The Commission recommended that the applicant revisit the agreement to include a clause on the maximum number of hours per shift and resubmit it for approval once the defect was rectified.

Dartmoor & Bush Nursing Centre Inc

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established