DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Higgins Coatings Pty Ltd
(AG2021/4733)

HIGGINS COATINGS PTY LTD (VICTORIAN) REPAINT AGREEMENT 2021-2024

Building, metal and civil construction industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT YOUNG	MELBOURNE, 11 MAY 2021

Application for approval of the Higgins Coatings Pty Ltd (Victorian) Repaint Agreement 2021-2024.

[1] Higgins Coatings Pty Ltd (the Employer) has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Higgins Coatings Pty Ltd (Victorian) Repaint Agreement 2021-2024 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] The Form F16 nominated Robert Ingram as an employee bargaining representative for the Agreement. Robert Ingram has lodged a Form F18A statutory declaration in support of the approval of the Agreement.

[3] The Employer has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached at Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and 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 the accompanying statutory declaration and the additional information provided by the Employer, 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.

[5] The Agreement was approved on 11 May 2021 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 18 May 2021. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 October 2024.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Higgins Coatings Pty Ltd applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Higgins Coatings Pty Ltd (Victorian) Repaint Agreement 2021-2024. The application was made pursuant to section 235 of the Fair Work Act 2009, which allows for the approval of enterprise agreements that provide for terms and conditions that are not covered by existing awards or registered agreements. The nature of the dispute was whether the agreement met the requirements of the Act and was in the best interests of the employees.

The primary legal issue before the Commission was whether the agreement complied with the provisions of the Fair Work Act and the process outlined for approval of enterprise agreements. Specifically, the Commission needed to consider whether the agreement had been fairly negotiated and whether it provided for terms and conditions that were better off overall for the employees. The Commission also needed to ensure that the agreement did not undermine the protection of the safety, health and welfare of employees.

In its decision, the Commission found that the agreement had been fairly negotiated and provided for terms and conditions that were better off overall for the employees. The Commission noted that the agreement included provisions for the safety, health and welfare of employees, and that it did not undermine the protection of employees. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement met the requirements of the Act and was in the best interests of the employees. The Commission approved the agreement, and it will now apply to all employees of Higgins Coatings Pty Ltd in Victoria for the period of 2021-2024.

Higgins Coatings 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