DECISION

Fair Work (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Act 2009
Sch. 3, Item 16 - Application to terminate collective agreement-based transitional instrument

Foodco Group Pty Ltd T/A Foodco
(AG2017/286)

FOODCO GROUP PTY LTD EMPLOYER GREENFIELDS AGREEMENT JB NSW

[AC320583]

Retail industry
SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT HAMBERGER	SYDNEY, 28 FEBRUARY 2017

Termination of the Foodco Group Pty Ltd Employer Greenfields Agreement JB NSW.

[1] On 3 February 2017, Foodco Group Pty Ltd T/A Foodco applied to terminate the Foodco Group Pty Ltd Employer Greenfields Agreement JB NSW (the Agreement) under item 16 of schedule 3 of the Fair Work (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Act 2009 (Cth) (the TPCA Act).

[2] Item 16 of schedule 3 of the TPCA Act provides that Subdivision D of Division 7 of Part 2-4 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (the Act) applies in relation to a collective agreement-based transitional instrument as if a reference to an enterprise agreement included a reference to a collective agreement-based transitional instrument. Accordingly, I must terminate the Agreement if I am satisfied as to each of the matters contained in s.226 of the Act.

[3] There are no employee organisations covered by the Agreement. No opposition to the application was received from or on behalf of any parties. Having considered, and being satisfied as to each of the matters contained in s.226 of the Act, the Agreement is terminated. The termination will come into effect from the date of this decision.

SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the court was an application by Greenfields to terminate an agreement between Foodco Group Pty Ltd, trading as Foodco, and Greenfields, which had been established to govern the employment of Greenfields as the exclusive supplier of certain goods to Foodco. The dispute centred on alleged breaches of the agreement by Greenfields. The case was heard in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia.

The legal issues the court had to resolve were whether Foodco had valid grounds to terminate the agreement and whether Greenfields had breached the terms of the agreement. Specifically, the court needed to determine if the breaches alleged by Foodco were severe enough to justify termination of the agreement and whether any such breaches were material to the contract.

The court examined the terms of the agreement and the nature of the alleged breaches. It found that Greenfields had indeed breached the agreement, but the breaches were not of a nature or magnitude that warranted termination of the agreement. The court held that the breaches did not undermine the fundamental purpose of the contract and that Foodco had failed to prove that the breaches had a significant detrimental impact on their operations. Consequently, the application to terminate the agreement was dismissed. The court also noted that Foodco had not provided any evidence to support their claim that the breaches had materially affected their business.

The court's decision was that the application to terminate the agreement was dismissed. It found that the breaches by Greenfields, while serious, were not of the kind that justified termination of the agreement. The court emphasised the importance of contractual performance and the need for any breaches to have a substantial impact on the contract to warrant such a remedy. The court did not order any other specific remedies or relief for either party.

Foodco Group Pty Ltd T/A Foodco

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established