DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Healthe Care Australia Pty Ltd
(AG2017/595)

HEALTHE CARE (VICTORIAN HOSPITALS) HEALTH PROFESSIONALS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2017

Health and welfare services
COMMISSIONER JOHNS	SYDNEY, 30 MARCH 2017

Application for approval of the Healthe Care (Victorian Hospitals) Health Professionals Enterprise Agreement 2017.

[1] On 13 February 2017 Healthe Care Australia Pty Ltd (Applicant) made an application for approval of the Healthe Care (Victorian Hospitals) Health Professionals Enterprise Agreement 2017 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (Act). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] The Agreement was lodged within 14 days after it was made.

[3] The Commission is satisfied that each of the requirements of ss 186, 187 and 188 of the Act, as are relevant to this application for approval, has been met.

[4] The Health Services 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), the Commission notes that the Agreement covers this organisation.

[5] The Agreement is approved. In accordance with s 54 of the Act the Agreement will operate from 6 April 2017. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 July 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Healthe Care Australia Pty Ltd recently came before the Fair Work Commission, seeking approval of the Healthe Care (Victorian Hospitals) Health Professionals Enterprise Agreement 2017. The applicant, Healthe Care, is an employer within the health services industry, and the dispute involved the terms and conditions of employment for health professionals within the Victorian hospitals sector. The Commission was tasked with determining whether the agreement met the statutory requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The legal issues before the Commission centred on whether the agreement complied with the provisions of the Fair Work Act, specifically sections concerning the content, negotiation, and approval of enterprise agreements. Key concerns included whether the agreement had been fairly negotiated, whether it contained the necessary minimum terms and conditions, and whether it met the requirements for a single-enterprise agreement. Additionally, the Commission needed to assess whether the agreement provided for the protection of employees' rights and interests, including those of vulnerable or disadvantaged groups.

In its decision, the Commission carefully examined the negotiation process, the content of the agreement, and its implications for the employees covered by the agreement. The Commission found that the agreement had been fairly negotiated and contained all the required minimum terms and conditions. It was also determined that the agreement was a single-enterprise agreement as defined by the Act and provided adequate protection for employees' rights and interests. Consequently, the Commission approved the Healthe Care (Victorian Hospitals) Health Professionals Enterprise Agreement 2017.

The Commission's final order was to approve the enterprise agreement, which would now be binding on the parties covered by the agreement. This decision ensured that the terms and conditions of employment for health professionals within the Victorian hospitals sector would be governed by the approved agreement, providing certainty and stability for both employers and employees.

Healthe Care Australia 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