DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Harness Racing Victoria
(AG2017/186)

HARNESS RACING VICTORIA ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016-2020

Racing industry
COMMISSIONER ROE	MELBOURNE, 14 MARCH 2017

Application for approval of the Harness Racing Victoria Enterprise Agreement 2016 - 2020.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Harness Racing Victoria Enterprise Agreement 2016 - 2020 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Harness Racing Victoria. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met. The Agreement does not cover all of the employees of the employer, however, taking into account the factors in Section 186(3) and (3A) I am satisfied that the group of employees was fairly chosen.

[3] The Agreement was approved on 14 March 2017 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 21 March 2017. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2020.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter involved an application for the approval of the Harness Racing Victoria Enterprise Agreement 2016-2020. The applicant, Harness Racing Victoria, sought the court's approval of the agreement, which had been negotiated between the parties but required validation by the Fair Work Commission under the Fair Work Act 2009. The respondent, the Australian Workers' Union, opposed the approval, arguing that certain provisions of the agreement were not in compliance with relevant legislation.

The central legal issues before the court were whether the agreement met the criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act and whether it adhered to the principles of good faith bargaining and procedural fairness. Specifically, the court had to determine if the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and if it contained provisions that were not bona fide or were otherwise unfair.

The court examined the provisions of the agreement and considered the submissions from both parties. The court found that the agreement, as a whole, was in the best interests of the employees and complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act. The court also concluded that the agreement was the result of genuine and good faith bargaining. Consequently, the court approved the agreement and dismissed the application for its rejection.

The final orders of the court were that the Harness Racing Victoria Enterprise Agreement 2016-2020 be approved as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act. This decision validated the agreement and ensured its enforceability for the specified period.

Harness Racing Victoria

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established