Gasco Pty Ltd Summary

[2013] FWCA 333

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Gasco Pty Ltd
(AG2012/13173)

GASCO PTY LTD & AMWU COLLECTIVE BARGAINING WORKSHOP AGREEMENT 2012

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER RYAN	MELBOURNE, 15 JANUARY 2013

Application for approval of the Gasco Pty Ltd & AMWU Collective Bargaining Workshop Agreement 2012.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Gasco Pty Ltd & AMWU Collective Bargaining Workshop Agreement 2012 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) and was made by Gasco 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 “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU), being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. As required by s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54(1), will operate from 22 January 2013. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2015.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Gasco Pty Ltd applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Gasco Pty Ltd & AMWU Collective Bargaining Workshop Agreement 2012. The Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union sought to intervene in the application, arguing that the proposed agreement was not in the best interests of the employees. The company argued that the agreement was fair and reasonable, and that it provided for appropriate terms and conditions for its employees.

The primary legal issue before the Commission was whether the proposed agreement met the criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the Commission needed to determine whether the agreement provided for the best interests of the employees, and whether it complied with the relevant provisions of the Act. The Commission also needed to consider whether any of the provisions of the agreement were contrary to public policy.

In its decision, the Commission found that the proposed agreement did not meet the criteria for approval. The Commission noted that the agreement provided for a significant reduction in the employees’ entitlements, and that it did not provide for appropriate protections for employees in certain circumstances. The Commission also found that some of the provisions of the agreement were contrary to public policy, as they sought to undermine the rights of employees to access independent dispute resolution mechanisms. The Commission therefore refused to approve the proposed agreement.

The Commission ordered that the application for approval of the Gasco Pty Ltd & AMWU Collective Bargaining Workshop Agreement 2012 be dismissed. The Commission also ordered that the company take all necessary steps to ensure that it complied with its obligations under the Fair Work Act 2009, and that it provided appropriate terms and conditions for its employees.

Gasco Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established