[2017] FWCA 6489

The attached document replaces the document previously issued with the above code on 6 December 2017.

The title of the Agreement is amended to correct a typographical error

Associate to Commissioner McKinnon

Dated 7 December 2017

[2017] FWCA 6489

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Graph Employment Pty Ltd T/A Graph Building
(AG2017/3816)

GRAPH EMPLOYMENT PTY LTD ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2017 - 2021

Building, metal and civil construction industries
COMMISSIONER MCKINNON	MELBOURNE, 6 DECEMBER 2017

Application for approval of the Graph Employment Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2017 - 2021.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Graph Employment Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2017 - 2021 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Graph Employment Pty Ltd T/A Graph Building. 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, 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 Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 13 December 2017. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 5 December 2021.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the Fair Work Commission concerned an application by Graph Employment Pty Ltd, trading as Graph Building, for approval of their Enterprise Agreement 2017-2021. The dispute centred on whether the agreement met the requirements set forth in the Fair Work Act 2009, particularly concerning the process by which the agreement was made and the content of the agreement itself.

The legal issues that the Commission had to address were primarily whether the agreement was made in accordance with the provisions of the Fair Work Act and whether it contained all the mandatory terms prescribed by the legislation. Furthermore, the Commission needed to assess if the agreement fairly represented the employees' interests and was free from any invalid provisions that could render it unenforceable.

In delivering its decision, the Commission examined the process by which the agreement was negotiated and whether it involved genuine bargaining. The Commission also considered the contents of the agreement to ensure it included all mandatory terms and did not include any terms that were contrary to public policy or unfair. After thorough deliberation, the Commission concluded that the agreement was indeed made through a process that met the statutory requirements and that it contained all the necessary provisions. The Commission also found that the agreement was fair and did not include any terms that would render it unenforceable. Consequently, the Commission approved the Enterprise Agreement 2017-2021.

The final orders of the Commission were that the Enterprise Agreement 2017-2021, as submitted by Graph Employment Pty Ltd, was approved and would come into effect on the date specified in the agreement. This decision effectively formalised the terms of employment for the employees covered by the agreement for the specified period.

Graph Employment Pty Ltd T/A Graph Building

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established