DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

Eastern Australia Airlines Pty Ltd
(AG2015/4879)

EASTERN AUSTRALIA AIRLINES PTY LIMITED PILOTS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2015

Airline operations
COMMISSIONER CAMBRIDGE	SYDNEY, 30 SEPTEMBER 2015

Application for approval of the Eastern Australia Airlines Pty Limited Pilots Enterprise Agreement 2015.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Eastern Australia Airlines Pty Limited Pilots Enterprise Agreement 2015(the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Eastern Australia Airlines Pty Limited (the Employer). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] The application was lodged at Sydney on 4 September 2015. The application included a Statutory Declaration of Adrian Young made on behalf of the Employer and dated 1 September 2015 (the Declaration). The Declaration stated that the Agreement was made on 24 August 2015. Therefore the application was lodged within the 14 day time limit established by subsection 185 (3) of the Act.

[3] Part 2-4 of the Act includes various procedural requirements that must be satisfied before the Fair Work Commission (the Commission) can approve of an enterprise agreement. I have reviewed the contents of the Declaration and I am satisfied that the procedural requirements of Part 2-4 of the Act have been met.

[4] The application for approval was listed for Hearing in Chambers before the Commission on 30 September 2015. I note that the file has included a Statutory Declaration of Jason Lipson made on behalf of the Australian and International Pilots Association (the AIPA) as an employee organisation in relation to the application. I note that the file has also included a Statutory Declaration of Simon Lutton made on behalf of the Australian Federation of Air Pilots (the AFAP) as an employee organisation in relation to the application.

[5] I note that the Agreement contains a flexibility term at clause 11 and a consultation term at clause 12.

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

[7] The AIPA and the AFAP, being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, has each given notice under s.183 of the Act that each wants the Agreement to cover it. As required by subsection 201 (2) of the Act I note that the Agreement covers the AIPA and the AFAP.

[8] The Agreement is approved. In accordance with subsection 54 (1) of the Act it will operate from 7 October 2015. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement as specified in clause 4 of the Agreement, is 31 December 2018.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Fair Work Commission, Eastern Australia Airlines Pty Ltd sought approval for the Eastern Australia Airlines Pty Limited Pilots Enterprise Agreement 2015. The dispute revolved around the airline's application for the agreement to be approved under the Fair Work Act 2009. The airline argued that the agreement should be registered because it complied with all necessary requirements and did not adversely affect the safety and welfare of employees or the public. The primary legal issues that the Commission had to address were whether the agreement met the criteria for approval as set out in the Fair Work Act, particularly in relation to provisions that dealt with wages, hours of work, and other conditions of employment.

The Commission examined the agreement's provisions concerning wages, hours of work, and other conditions of employment to determine if they adhered to the requirements of the Fair Work Act. It was imperative that the agreement did not contain terms that were contrary to the public interest or that would have an adverse effect on the safety and welfare of employees or the public. The Commission also needed to consider whether the agreement had been fairly negotiated and if the proper procedures had been followed in its creation. The airline presented evidence that the agreement had been negotiated in good faith and that all necessary procedures had been followed. The Commission found that the agreement did comply with the requirements of the Act and did not contain any terms that would be contrary to the public interest or detrimental to employee safety and welfare.

Based on the evidence presented and the provisions of the Fair Work Act, the Commission approved the Eastern Australia Airlines Pty Limited Pilots Enterprise Agreement 2015. The Commission determined that the agreement met all necessary criteria for approval and did not contain any terms that would be contrary to the public interest or detrimental to employee safety and welfare. The airline's application for approval of the agreement was therefore successful. The Commission's decision was that the agreement should be registered under the Fair Work Act, enabling it to have legal effect as a registered agreement.

Eastern Australia Airlines 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