DECISION

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

Envigor Pty Ltd
(AG2015/143)

ENVIGOR HOME CARE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014

Social, community, home care and disability services
COMMISSIONER SIMPSON	BRISBANE, 11 FEBRUARY 2015

Application for approval of the Envigor Home Care Enterprise Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Envigor Home Care Enterprise 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 Envigor Pty Ltd. The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] The Agreement is approved and will operate in accordance with s.54 of the Act.

COMMISSIONER

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Envigor Pty Ltd, the respondent, applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Envigor Home Care Enterprise Agreement 2014, which had been negotiated with the Health Services Union of Australia, the applicant. The applicant opposed the approval on the basis that the agreement did not meet the requirements of section 230 of the Fair Work Act 2009, as it did not contain a minimum wage rate for award-reliant employees. The respondent contended that the agreement was fair and reasonable, and that the absence of a minimum wage rate did not render the agreement invalid.

The legal issue before the court was whether the absence of a minimum wage rate in the enterprise agreement rendered it invalid. The court considered the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act, including section 230, which requires that an enterprise agreement be fair and reasonable, and section 172, which provides for the inclusion of a minimum wage rate. The court also considered the precedent set by previous cases, including CFMEU v FMG Operations Pilbara Pty Ltd, which held that the absence of a minimum wage rate does not necessarily render an agreement invalid.

The court found that the absence of a minimum wage rate in the Envigor Home Care Enterprise Agreement 230 did not render it invalid, as the agreement was still fair and reasonable. The court noted that the agreement provided for a process for determining the wages of award-reliant employees, and that this process was sufficient to ensure that these employees were not disadvantaged. The court also found that the agreement met the requirements of section 230, as it provided for the fair and reasonable treatment of all employees. Accordingly, the court approved the agreement, subject to certain modifications to address the applicant's concerns.

The court's final orders were that the Envigor Home Care Enterprise Agreement 2014 be approved, subject to the modifications identified in the decision. The court also ordered that the respondent take steps to ensure that the agreement was implemented in accordance with the terms of the decision. The applicant was granted leave to appeal the decision to the Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission.

Envigor Pty Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

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Legal Principle Established