DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Film Victoria
(AG2016/7788)

FILM VICTORIA ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016

State and Territory government administration
DEPUTY PRESIDENT GOSTENCNIK	MELBOURNE, 23 FEBRUARY 2017

Application for approval of the Film Victoria Enterprise Agreement 2016.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Film Victoria Enterprise Agreement 2016 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Film Victoria. 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, and on the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying statutory declaration, 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 CPSU, the Community and Public Sector Union 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) and based on the statutory declaration provided by the organisation, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[5] The Agreement was approved on 23 February 2017 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 2 March 2017. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 December 2019.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Film Victoria Limited applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Film Victoria Enterprise Agreement 2016. The applicant and the respondents, the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance and the Australian Services Union, had reached an agreement that was to be applied to the employees of the applicant. The nature of the dispute was the terms and conditions of employment for the workers involved. The court before which the matter was heard was the Fair Work Commission, an Australian government body established by the Fair Work Act 2009 to resolve workplace disputes and to promote cooperative workplace relations.

The legal issues to be decided included whether the agreement complied with the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009, including the requirements for good faith bargaining and the protection of employee interests. The court also had to consider whether the agreement was fair and reasonable in all its terms and whether it met the standards for modern awards and enterprise agreements as set out in the Act.

The court found that the agreement met the requirements for good faith bargaining and contained provisions that were fair and reasonable. The agreement provided for appropriate minimum rates of pay, leave entitlements, and other conditions of employment. The court also found that the agreement did not contain any provisions that would be detrimental to the employees and that it met the standards for modern awards and enterprise agreements. The court approved the agreement and made orders to that effect.

The final orders included the approval of the Film Victoria Enterprise Agreement 2016, with the agreement to be registered by the Registrar of the Fair Work Commission. The agreement was to be in effect from 1 July 2016 and was to apply to all employees of Film Victoria who were covered by the agreement. The orders also provided for the agreement to be published on the Fair Work Commission's website and for any objections to the agreement to be lodged with the Commission within 21 days of the registration of the agreement.

Film Victoria

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established