DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Independent Education Union of Australia
(AG2019/1937)

COLLAROY PLATEAU COMMUNITY KINDERGARTEN INC. EMPLOYEE COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT 2019

Children’s services
COMMISSIONER JOHNS	SYDNEY, 17 JUNE 2019

Application for approval of the Collaroy Plateau Community Kindergarten Inc. Employee Collective Agreement 2019.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Collaroy Plateau Community Kindergarten Inc. Employee Collective Agreement 2019 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Independent Education Union of Australia. 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 Independent Education Union of Australia (IEU) 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) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 24 June 2019. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 December 2021.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the Fair Work Commission was an application by the Independent Education Union of Australia to have the Collaroy Plateau Community Kindergarten Inc. Employee Collective Agreement 2019 approved as a certified agreement. The applicant union sought to have the agreement recognised as a certified agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009, which would allow it to be registered and enforced as a binding agreement between the employer and employees. The dispute centred on whether the agreement met the statutory requirements for certification and whether it complied with the standards of good faith bargaining and procedural fairness.

The legal issues that the commission needed to address included whether the agreement was genuinely negotiated between the union and the employer, and whether it contained the necessary minimum terms and conditions as prescribed by the Fair Work Act. Additionally, the commission had to determine if the agreement was consistent with the principles of good faith bargaining and procedural fairness. The union argued that the agreement was a product of genuine negotiations and met all statutory requirements. The employer, however, contended that certain provisions of the agreement were not genuinely negotiated and that the process leading up to the agreement was flawed.

In assessing these issues, the commission examined the evidence and submissions presented by both parties. It considered the negotiation process, the content of the agreement, and the compliance with statutory and procedural requirements. The commission found that the agreement had been genuinely negotiated and contained all the necessary minimum terms and conditions. It also determined that the agreement was consistent with the principles of good faith bargaining and procedural fairness. Based on these findings, the commission approved the agreement as a certified agreement.

The final orders of the commission included the approval of the Collaroy Plateau Community Kindergarten Inc. Employee Collective Agreement 2019 as a certified agreement. This decision means that the agreement is now registered and enforceable, providing a clear framework for the terms and conditions of employment for the employees of the kindergarten.

Independent Education Union of Australia

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established