Eastern Australia Airlines Pty Ltd T/A Qantaslink

[2015] FWC 8377

[2015] FWC 8377

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.602 - Application to correct obvious error(s) etc. in relation to FWC's decision

Eastern Australia Airlines Pty Ltd T/A Qantaslink
(ADM2015/9)

Airline operations
COMMISSIONER CAMBRIDGE	SYDNEY, 7 DECEMBER 2015

Application by Eastern Australia Airlines Pty Ltd T/A Qantaslink.

[1] On 30 September 2015, the Fair Work Commission (the Commission) issued a Decision [2015] FWCA 6719 (the approval Decision), approving of the Eastern Australia Airlines Pty Limited Pilots Enterprise Agreement 2015(the Agreement). The application for approval of the Agreement was made by Eastern Australia Airlines Pty Limited (the Employer). The Agreement covered the Employer, its employees, the Australian and International Pilots Association (the AIPA), and the Australian Federation of Air Pilots (the AFAP).

[2] On 24 November 2015, the Employer made an application (the correction application), seeking that the Commission exercise powers under s. 602 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act), to correct an obvious error, defect or irregularity arising from the approval Decision. The correction application sets out the grounds for the order or relief sought and it included, inter alia, a statutory declaration of Simon Jeffrey Brown declared on 17 November 2015 (the Brown declaration). Mr Brown was a person authorised to make the statutory declaration on behalf of the Employer and he was a bargaining representative in relation to the Agreement.

[3] Relevantly, the Brown declaration stated that the agreement document that had been provided with the application for approval was a document that was an earlier version of the proposed enterprise agreement and not a copy of the proposed enterprise agreement that was approved by employees. Consequently, the document which was the subject of the approval Decision was not the correct document that represented the enterprise agreement that had been made in accordance with s.182 of the Act.

[4] The correction application has sought that the Commission amend the approval Decision so that it refer to the enterprise agreement made in accordance with s. 182 of the Act rather than the earlier version of the agreement document which had been erroneously included with the approval application. A copy of the enterprise agreement that had been made in accordance with s. 182 of the Act was attached to the Brown declaration and marked as “SB-1”.

[5] The correction application also included a statutory declaration of Catherine Alexandra Larkins made on behalf of the AFAP, and which agreed with the contents of the Brown declaration and supported the correction application. Further, the correction application also included a statutory declaration of Jason Lipson made on behalf of the AIPA, and which agreed with the contents of the Brown declaration and supported the correction application.

[6] The Commission has considered the correction application and the supporting materials that were provided including the Brown declaration and the declarations made on behalf of both the AFAP and the AIPA. The Commission determines that an obvious error has occurred in respect to the document that is referenced in the approval Decision. Therefore pursuant to s. 602 of the Act a correction order shall be made to the approval Decision. The correction Order shall remove the existing agreement document that is referenced in the approval Decision and it shall be replaced with the document “SB-1” attached to the Brown declaration.

[7] The appropriate correction Order shall be issued separately.

COMMISSIONER

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