DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Hardwicks Meat Works Pty Ltd
(AG2018/5795)

HARDWICKS MEATWORKS PTY LTD AND THE AUSTRALASIAN MEAT INDUSTRY EMPLOYEES' UNION VICTORIAN MEAT PROCESSING AGREEMENT 2018

Meat Industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 3 JUNE 2019

Application for approval of the Hardwicks Meatworks Pty Ltd and the Australasian Meat Industry Employees' Union Victorian Meat Processing Agreement 2018

[1] Hardwicks Meat Works Pty Ltd has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Hardwicks Meatworks Pty Ltd and the Australasian Meat Industry Employees’ Union Victorian Meat Processing Agreement 2019 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] 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.

[3] 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 186, 187, 188 and 190 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[4] Pursuant to s 205(2) of the Act, the model consultation term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[5] The Australasian Meat Industry Employees Union, being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s 183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s 201(2) and based on the statutory declaration provided by the organisation, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[6] The Agreement was approved on 3 June 2019 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 10 June 2019. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 11 August 2022.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Hardwicks Meat Works Pty Ltd applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Hardwicks Meatworks Pty Ltd and the Australasian Meat Industry Employees' Union Victorian Meat Processing Agreement 2018. The applicant was a meat processing company, and the respondent was a union representing employees in the meat processing industry. The dispute centred on whether the agreement provided adequate protections for employees and complied with relevant industrial laws.

The legal issues before the court were whether the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and whether it complied with the Fair Work Act 2009. The court needed to determine if the agreement met the standards for approval under the Act and if it provided appropriate protections for employees' wages, conditions, and entitlements.

The court examined the agreement's provisions and found that it provided adequate protections for employees' wages, conditions, and entitlements. The court noted that the agreement included provisions for minimum wages, penalty rates, and other employment conditions that were consistent with the Fair Work Act 2009. The court also found that the agreement provided appropriate protections for employees' health and safety in the workplace. The court concluded that the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and complied with the relevant industrial laws.

The court approved the agreement, subject to certain conditions. The court ordered that the agreement would be registered as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009, effective from the date of the decision. The court also ordered that the agreement would be available for inspection by employees and employers and that any disputes arising from the agreement would be resolved through the Fair Work Commission.

Hardwicks Meat Works Pty Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established