DECISION

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

George Weston Food Limited T/A Tip Top Bakeries
(AG2014/11031)

TIP TOP BAKERIES (NSW) MAINTENANCE AGREEMENT 2014

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT LAWRENCE	SYDNEY, 19 JANUARY 2015

Application for approval of the Tip Top Bakeries (NSW) Maintenance Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Tip Top Bakeries (NSW) Maintenance Agreement 2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). 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) and the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (CEPU), being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under s.183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. As required by s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers those organisations.

[4] The Agreement is approved. In accordance with s.54(1) it will operate from 26 January 2015. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 26 January 2019.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Fair Work Commission, the applicant, George Weston Food Limited trading as Tip Top Bakeries, applied for approval of the Tip Top Bakeries (NSW) Maintenance Agreement 2014. This agreement was entered into by the applicant and the relevant unions. The unions had previously certified the agreement as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The application hinged on whether the agreement met the criteria for approval under section 235 of the Fair Work Act.

The central legal issue before the Commission was whether the agreement provided for the fair and reasonable resolution of workplace disputes and the fair and reasonable resolution of the terms and conditions of employment. This included an examination of the processes and provisions within the agreement for resolving disputes and determining employment terms. The Commission needed to ensure the agreement's provisions were fair and reasonable in light of the principles outlined in the Fair Work Act.

After reviewing the agreement, the Commission determined that it provided for fair and reasonable processes for resolving workplace disputes and determining terms and conditions of employment. The agreement included provisions for conciliation, mediation, and arbitration, which aligned with the principles of fairness and reasonableness. The Commission also found that the agreement's terms were fair and reasonable, considering the bargaining positions of the parties and the broader economic context. Based on these findings, the Commission approved the agreement under section 235 of the Fair Work Act.

George Weston Food Limited T/A Tip Top Bakeries

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established