Graymont (Australia) Pty Ltd Summary

[2022] FWCA 572

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Graymont (Australia) Pty Ltd

(AG2022/235)

Graymont (Australia) Pty Ltd Buchan Enterprise Agreement 2021

Mining industry
COMMISSIONER O'NEILL	MELBOURNE, 22 FEBRUARY 2022

Application for approval of the Graymont (Australia) Pty Ltd Buchan Enterprise Agreement 2021

Graymont (Australia) Pty Ltd has applied for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Graymont (Australia) Pty Ltd Buchan Enterprise Agreement 2021 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) and is a single enterprise agreement.

The Employer 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. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

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.

The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 1 March 2022. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 21 February 2026.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In this matter, Graymont (Australia) Pty Ltd applied to the Fair Work Commission for the approval of the Buchan Enterprise Agreement 2021. The applicant is an employer, and the dispute concerns the terms and conditions of employment for its employees, which are to be regulated by the proposed enterprise agreement. The Commission is the body empowered to assess and approve such agreements under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The central legal issue before the Commission was whether the proposed agreement met the requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act. This involved examining whether the agreement had been made in the 'best interests' of the employees it covers, and whether the agreement had been genuinely negotiated between the employer and the employees, or their representatives. Additionally, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement contained all the mandatory terms prescribed by the Act, and whether any provisions were contrary to public policy.

The Commission found that the proposed agreement had been genuinely negotiated and was in the best interests of the employees. It satisfied all the mandatory terms set out in the Act and did not contravene any public policy. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement had been made fairly and without any undue influence or coercion. Consequently, the Commission approved the Buchan Enterprise Agreement 2021, and it became legally binding on the parties from the date of the decision.

The final orders of the Commission were that the Buchan Enterprise Agreement 2021 be and is approved in accordance with the provisions of section 233 of the Fair Work Act 2009. The agreement was to be registered with the Commission, and the approval would be published in the Commonwealth Gazette. The agreement was to have effect from the date of the decision and would apply to the employees covered by it.

Graymont (Australia) Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established