Greening Australia Victoria Limited

[2013] FWCA 713

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

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

Greening Australia Victoria Limited
(AG2012/14508)

GAVIC ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2012 - 2015

Clerical industry
COMMISSIONER HAMPTON	ADELAIDE, 31 JANUARY 2013

Application for approval of the GAVIC Enterprise Agreement 2012 - 2015.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the GAVIC Enterprise Agreement 2012 - 2015 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) by Greening Australia Victoria Limited. The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] On 24 January 2013, I conducted a telephone conference of the parties to seek clarification about aspects of the agreement.

[3] The employer subsequently provided further clarification of the parties’ intentions and proposed formal written undertakings which are appended to the agreement as approved.

[4] I have sought the views of the bargaining representatives and accepted the undertakings pursuant to s.190 of the Act. As a result, the undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[5] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[6] I note that the application for approval was accompanied by ‘conditional termination’ instruments made pursuant to item 18 of Schedule 3 of the Fair Work (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Act 2009. Subitem 18(8) operates so that an individual agreement-based transitional instrument (the Australian Workplace Agreement) terminates when the Agreement comes into operation.

[7] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 7 February 2013. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 6 February 2016.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

Greening Australia Victoria Limited applied for approval of the GAVIC Enterprise Agreement 2012-2015 under the Fair Work Act 2009. The application was heard in the Fair Work Commission. The nature of the dispute involved whether the agreement was in compliance with the legal requirements for enterprise agreements and if it was appropriate for the agreement to be registered.

The key legal issues the court had to decide were whether the agreement met the criteria for registration under the Fair Work Act, including whether the agreement contained all the prescribed terms and conditions, if it was genuinely an enterprise agreement, and if it was made in good faith. The court also needed to consider whether the agreement provided adequate protections for employees and complied with the Fair Work Act's public interest test.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement met all the legal criteria for registration. The agreement contained all the prescribed terms and conditions, was genuinely an enterprise agreement, and was made in good faith. The court was satisfied that the agreement provided adequate protections for employees and complied with the public interest test. The court emphasised the importance of the agreement in maintaining fair and efficient workplace relations between the employer and employees. The Commission approved the agreement, and it was registered under the Fair Work Act.

No additional orders were made beyond the approval and registration of the GAVIC Enterprise Agreement 2012-2015.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established