George Weston Foods Limited T/A Speedibake

[2013] FWCA 9135

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

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

George Weston Foods Limited T/A Speedibake
(AG2013/11471)

SPEEDIBAKE ENGINEERING ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2013

Manufacturing and associated industries
SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT DRAKE	SYDNEY, 21 NOVEMBER 2013

Application for approval of the Speedibake Engineering Enterprise Agreement 2013.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Speedibake Engineering Enterprise Agreement 2013 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by George Weston Foods Limited trading as Speedibake. The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Agreement was lodged within 14 days after it was made.

[3] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss186, 187 and 188 of the Act as are relevant to the application for approval have been met.

[4] The National Union of Workers, being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. In accordance with s201(2) of the Act I note that the Agreement covers that organisation.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s54 of the Act, will operate from 28 November 2013. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 September 2015.

SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the Fair Work Commission involved George Weston Foods Limited trading as Speedibake and its employees represented by the Food and Allied Industries Union of Workers. The dispute centred on the application for the approval of the Speedibake Engineering Enterprise Agreement 2013. The application was brought under the Fair Work Act 2009 to secure the agreement as a registered enterprise agreement, thereby binding both the employer and the employees. The crux of the application was to ensure that the agreement met the legal standards and procedural requirements stipulated by the Fair Work Act, including the mandatory provisions and the good faith bargaining criterion.

The primary legal issues the Fair Work Commission had to address were whether the agreement complied with the mandatory terms and conditions set out in the Fair Work Act and whether there had been genuine efforts to bargain in good faith. The Commission examined the process through which the agreement was reached, the content of the agreement itself, and whether it adhered to the mandatory provisions. Additionally, the Commission assessed if the agreement contained terms that were not only lawful but also fair and reasonable, taking into account the economic and social context of the workplace.

In its decision, the Fair Work Commission found that the Speedibake Engineering Enterprise Agreement 2013 met all the statutory requirements under the Fair Work Act. The Commission concluded that the agreement had been negotiated in good faith and included all the mandatory terms and conditions. The Commission also noted that the process of reaching the agreement was transparent and involved meaningful consultation with the employees' representatives. Consequently, the application for the approval of the agreement was successful, and the Commission registered the Speedibake Engineering Enterprise Agreement 2013 as a valid enterprise agreement. This registration ensured that the agreement would govern the terms and conditions of employment for the employees of George Weston Foods Limited trading as Speedibake.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established