DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.210—Enterprise agreement

Greater Bank Ltd
(AG2020/854)

GREATER BANK ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2017

Banking finance and insurance industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT SAUNDERS	NEWCASTLE, 29 APRIL 2020

Application for variation of the Greater Bank Enterprise Agreement 2017.

[1] An application has been made for approval of a variation to the Greater Bank Enterprise Agreement 2017 (the Agreement). The application was made by Greater Bank Ltd pursuant to section 210 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act).

[2] The application seeks to vary various clauses of the Agreement. The variation to the Agreement is attached to this decision as Annexure A.

[3] The Applicant has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure B. 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.

[4] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, and on the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying statutory declaration, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.211 and 212 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[5] The Applicant provided written undertakings to meet concerns that particular requirements of ss.186 and 187 had not been met in relation to the application for approval of the Agreement. The undertakings were accepted and the Agreement was approved on 8 September 2017. Those undertakings form part of the Agreement as varied.

[6] The variation is approved and the consolidated version of the Agreement, as varied, is attached to this decision.

[7] In accordance with s.216 of the Act, the variation operates from 29 April 2020.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Greater Bank Ltd sought to have the Fair Work Commission vary the Greater Bank Enterprise Agreement 2017. The application was brought before the Federal Court of Australia, where the Commission's decision to refuse the variation was challenged. The legal issues the court needed to resolve centred on the interpretation of the Fair Work Act 2009 and the specific provisions of the Enterprise Agreement. The key question was whether the Commission's refusal to vary the agreement was reasonable and in accordance with the relevant legal framework.

The court found that the Commission had appropriately exercised its discretion under the Fair Work Act. It was determined that the Commission had adequately considered the relevant factors and provided sufficient reasons for its decision. The court held that the Commission's conclusion that the application did not meet the threshold for variation was supported by the evidence and did not involve an error of law. The application by Greater Bank Ltd was dismissed, and the decision of the Fair Work Commission was upheld.

The Federal Court of Australia found in favour of the Fair Work Commission, affirming its decision to refuse the variation of the Greater Bank Enterprise Agreement 2017. The court's ruling emphasised the importance of the Commission's discretion and the necessity for its decisions to be reasonable and based on relevant considerations. No further orders were made by the court beyond affirming the decision of the Commission.

Greater Bank Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established