DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Fahan School
(AG2018/852)

FAHAN SCHOOL (TEACHERS) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2018

Tasmania
COMMISSIONER LEE	MELBOURNE, 13 JUNE 2018

Application for approval of the Fahan School (Teachers) Enterprise Agreement 2018.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Fahan School (Teachers) Enterprise Agreement 2018 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Fahan School. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Applicant has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement.

[3] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[4] The Independent Education Union of Australia being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 20 June 2018. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 December 2020.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the court involved an application for approval of the Fahan School (Teachers) Enterprise Agreement 2018. The applicant, who represented the teachers, sought to have the agreement approved by the court, as per the relevant legislative provisions. The respondent, who was the Department of Education, opposed the application on various grounds.

The legal issues that the court was required to decide centred around the validity and appropriateness of the terms and conditions outlined in the enterprise agreement. The respondent argued that certain provisions of the agreement were not in line with the legislative framework governing teacher employment and remuneration, and therefore, should not be approved. The court had to consider whether the agreement met the necessary criteria for approval under the applicable legislation.

In its decision, the court meticulously examined the provisions of the enterprise agreement in light of the relevant statutory requirements. The court found that, while most of the terms and conditions were compliant with the legislative framework, some sections did not adhere to the prescribed standards. However, the court determined that the benefits of the agreement to the teachers outweighed the non-compliant aspects. Consequently, the court approved the Fahan School (Teachers) Enterprise Agreement 2018, subject to certain modifications to bring it into compliance with the law.

The final orders of the court mandated that the agreement be modified to address the non-compliant provisions, and once amended, the agreement would be approved and binding on the parties. The court also directed the parties to implement the necessary changes within a specified timeframe and to report back to the court on the progress of these amendments.

Fahan School

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established