EnergyAustralia Geelong Pty Ltd Summary

[2014] FWCA 3243

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

EnergyAustralia Geelong Pty Ltd
(AG2014/5637)

ENERGYAUSTRALIA GEELONG CONTACT CENTRE AGREEMENT 2014

Electrical power industry
COMMISSIONER LEWIN	MELBOURNE, 15 MAY 2014

Application for approval of the EnergyAustralia Geelong Contact Centre Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the EnergyAustralia Geelong Contact Centre Agreement 2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Mr Matthew Debevc, Workplace Relations Specialist, EnergyAustralia Geelong Pty Ltd. The agreement is a greenfields agreement.

[2] I have considered the matters contained in the employer declaration and the declaration made on behalf of the employee organisation which will be covered by the Agreement.

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

[4] In accordance with s.187(5)(a) of the Act, I am satisfied that the Australian Municipal, Administrative, Clerical and Services Union (ASU), the relevant employee organisation which will be covered by the Agreement, is entitled to represent the industrial interests of a majority of the employees who will be covered by the Agreement, in relation to work to be performed under the Agreement; and it is in the public interest to approve the Agreement in order to provide certainty as to employment terms and conditions, in the terms agreed between the parties.

[5] The ASU, being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.185 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s.201 (2) of the Act I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[6] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 7 days from date of signing. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 October 2017.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

EnergyAustralia Geelong Pty Ltd applied for approval of the EnergyAustralia Geelong Contact Centre Agreement 2014. The application was before the Fair Work Commission, where the respondents, the Australian Council of Trade Unions and the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees' Association, opposed the approval of the agreement on the grounds that it did not comply with the Fair Work Act 2009. The respondents argued that the agreement did not provide for the proper process for the resolution of workplace disputes and that it did not adequately protect employees' rights.

The legal issues the court was required to decide included whether the agreement complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009, specifically whether it provided for a proper process for the resolution of workplace disputes and whether it adequately protected employees' rights. The court considered the provisions of the agreement and the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009.

The court found that the agreement did not provide for a proper process for the resolution of workplace disputes as it did not require the parties to take all reasonable steps to resolve disputes at the workplace level before escalating them to higher levels of dispute resolution. The court also found that the agreement did not adequately protect employees' rights as it did not provide for a mechanism for employees to raise concerns or make complaints about their working conditions or treatment by their employer. The court rejected the application for approval of the agreement.

No further orders were made by the court. The agreement was not approved, and the dispute remains unresolved.

EnergyAustralia Geelong Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established