DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

DHL Supply Chain (Australia) Pty Ltd
(AG2020/378)

DHL SUPPLY CHAIN (AUSTRALIA) PTY. LIMITED & UNITED WORKERS UNION, MULTI-PURPOSE AGREEMENT - NEW SOUTH WALES, 2019.

Storage services
DEPUTY PRESIDENT BOYCE	SYDNEY, 26 MARCH 2020

Application for approval of the DHL Supply Chain (Australia) Pty. Limited & United Workers Union, Multi-Purpose Agreement - New South Wales, 2019.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement to be known as the DHL Supply Chain (Australia) Pty. Limited & United Workers Union, Multi-Purpose Agreement - New South Wales, 2019 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act). It has been made by DHL Supply Chain (Australia) Pty Ltd (Applicant or Employer). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Employer has provided written undertakings dated 17 March 2020. Those undertakings are attached at Annexure A to this decision and become terms of the Agreement. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement (as compared to the relevant provisions of the Storage Services and Wholesale Award 2010), and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement.

[3] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 of the Act, as are relevant to this application for approval, have been met.

[4] I am satisfied the more beneficial entitlements of the NES will prevail where there is an inconsistency between the Agreement and the NES.

[5] The United Workers’ Union, being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants to be covered by the Agreement. In accordance with s.201(2) of the Act, I note that the Agreement covers this organisation.

[6] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 2 April 2020. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2021

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Undertakings

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Fair Work Commission, the matter of DHL Supply Chain (Australia) Pty Ltd, an applicant, was before the Commission. The Union, United Workers Union, was the respondent. The dispute centred on the application for approval of a multi-purpose agreement between the two parties, intended to regulate employment conditions in New South Wales for a period of three years. The Commission was required to determine if the agreement complied with the relevant legislative provisions and was in the interests of fairness and equity.

The primary legal issues for the Commission to resolve were whether the agreement was a genuine enterprise agreement, whether it contained the necessary minimum terms and conditions, and if the agreement was fair and reasonable. The Commission also had to consider whether the agreement met the statutory requirements under the Fair Work Act 2009. This included assessing if the agreement contained the appropriate provisions for the protection of employees' rights, as well as ensuring that the agreement did not discriminate against any group of employees.

After examining the agreement and hearing submissions from both parties, the Commission found that the agreement was a genuine enterprise agreement and contained the necessary minimum terms and conditions. The Commission concluded that the agreement was fair and reasonable, as it provided for the protection of employees' rights and did not discriminate against any group of employees. The agreement met the statutory requirements under the Fair Work Act 2009. Therefore, the Commission approved the DHL Supply Chain (Australia) Pty Ltd & United Workers Union, Multi-Purpose Agreement - New South Wales, 2019, effective from the date of the decision.

DHL Supply Chain (Australia) Pty Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established