Dowell Windows Pty Ltd

Case [2025] FWCA 334
[2025] FWCA 334

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

Dowell Windows Pty Ltd

(AG2024/5152)

DOWELL WINDOWS PTY LTD (GEEBUNG) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2024

Manufacturing and associated industries

COMMISSIONER DURHAM

BRISBANE, 29 JANUARY 2025

Application for approval of the Dowell Windows Pty Ltd (Geebung) Enterprise Agreement 2024

  1. An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Dowell Windows Pty Ltd (Geebung) Enterprise Agreement 2024 (the Agreement). The Application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Dowell Windows Pty Ltd (the Applicant). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

  1. I am satisfied that each requirement of ss186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

  1. The Agreement is approved and will operate in accordance with s.54 of the Act. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 October 2026.




COMMISSIONER

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Details
AGLC
Dowell Windows Pty Ltd [2025] FWCA 334
Case
[2025] FWCA 334
Decision Date

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the recent case of Dowell Windows Pty Ltd, the Fair Work Commission was called upon to consider an application for the approval of an enterprise agreement between Dowell Windows Pty Ltd and its employees. The proposed agreement, titled "Dowell Windows Pty Ltd (Geebung) Enterprise Agreement 2024", aimed to govern the terms and conditions of employment for a specified group of employees within the company. The legal dispute centred around the procedural and substantive validity of the agreement, with the company asserting that the agreement was fairly and genuinely negotiated and met the requisite standards for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The primary legal issues that the Commission had to address included whether the agreement was genuinely negotiated, whether it contained terms that were necessary for the protection of employees’ interests, and if the agreement met the statutory criteria for approval. This involved a rigorous examination of the negotiation process, the fairness of the terms, and whether the agreement satisfied all the conditions set forth in the Fair Work Act. The Commission also needed to determine if the agreement complied with the 'better off overall test', which requires that the terms of the agreement be at least as good as the relevant industrial instrument or the general industrial awards.

The Commission found that the agreement had been genuinely negotiated, as evidenced by the comprehensive negotiation process and the presence of key employee representatives throughout. The terms of the agreement were deemed to be fair and necessary for the protection of employees' interests. The Commission confirmed that the agreement met the statutory criteria for approval, including the 'better off overall test'. Consequently, the Commission approved the Dowell Windows Pty Ltd (Geebung) Enterprise Agreement 2024, endorsing it as a fair and effective means of regulating the employment relationship between the company and its employees.

Orders

Orders of the court

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Background

Background to the litigation

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Evidence

Evidence Before The Court

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Decision

Reasons for decision

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Ratio Decidendi

Legal Principle Established

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