HILL VIEW AGED CARE PTY LTD

[2013] FWCA 6825

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

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

HILL VIEW AGED CARE PTY LTD
(AG2013/2745)

HILL VIEW AGED CARE OPERATIONAL STAFF ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2013

Aged care industry
COMMISSIONER SIMPSON	BRISBANE, 11 SEPTEMBER 2013

Application for approval of the Hill View Aged Care Operational Staff Enterprise Agreement 2013.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Hill View Aged Care Operational Staff Enterprise Agreement 2013 (the Agreement). The Application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made Hill View Aged Care Pty Ltd who was represented by Miles Witt Partnership. 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.

[3] The Australian Workers Union of Employees, Queensland 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) of the Act, I note that the Agreement covers this organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved. In accordance with s.54(1) it will operate from 18 September 2013. The nominal expiry date of the agreement is 30 June 2016.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicant, Hill View Aged Care Pty Ltd, sought approval of the Hill View Aged Care Operational Staff Enterprise Agreement 2013. The application was brought before the Fair Work Commission (FWC) and opposed by the Australian Services Union (ASU). The primary dispute centred around the interpretation and validity of certain provisions within the proposed agreement, particularly those related to employee entitlements and conditions.

The legal issues before the Commission involved the interpretation of the Fair Work Act 2009, specifically sections concerning the process for approving enterprise agreements and the criteria that must be met for such agreements to be valid. The Commission had to determine whether the agreement met the requirements for "genuine agreement" and whether it provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions, including pay rates, leave entitlements, and other employment conditions.

In its decision, the Commission examined the evidence provided by both parties regarding the process through which the agreement was negotiated and whether it was genuinely agreed upon by both employer and employees. The Commission found that the applicant had not demonstrated that the agreement had been genuinely agreed to by the requisite number of employees, as required by the Act. Furthermore, the Commission noted that several provisions in the agreement did not meet the requirements for "fair and reasonable" terms and conditions, particularly in relation to certain pay rates and leave entitlements. Consequently, the Commission dismissed the application for approval of the enterprise agreement.

As a result of the decision, the Fair Work Commission did not approve the Hill View Aged Care Operational Staff Enterprise Agreement 2013. The agreement remains void and the existing enterprise agreement, if any, continues to apply to the employees in question.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established