ITW Commercial, a Division of ITW Australia

[2016] FWCA 1723

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

ITW Commercial, a Division of ITW Australia Pty Ltd t/a Modfix

(AG2016/2324)

MODFIX AND NATIONAL UNION OF WORKERS ENTERPRISE

AGREEMENT 2015

Manufacturing and associated industries

COMMISSIONER ROE

MELBOURNE, 21 MARCH 2016

Application for approval of the Modfix and National Union of Workers Enterprise Agreement

2015.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the

Modfix and National Union of Workers Enterprise Agreement 2015 (the Agreement). The

application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made

by ITW Commercial, a Division of ITW Australia Pty Ltd t/a Modfix. The Agreement is a

single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Applicant has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is

attached in Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment

to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertakings will not result in

substantial changes to the Agreement.

[3] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, 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. 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.

[4] The National Union of Workers 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.
[2016] FWCA 1723

[5] The Agreement was approved on 21 March 2016 and, in accordance with s.54, will

operate from 28 March 2016. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 October 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

[2016] FWCA 1723

Annexure A

[2016] FWCA 1723

CaseChat Overview and Summary

ITW Commercial, a Division of ITW Australia Pty Ltd trading as Modfix, sought approval of the Modfix and National Union of Workers Enterprise Agreement 2015 under section 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009. The application was made to the Fair Work Commission, with Commissioner Roe presiding over the matter in Melbourne. The primary objective was to determine whether the enterprise agreement met the legal requirements for approval as set out in sections 186, 187, 188, and 190 of the Act.

The legal issues before the court involved verifying whether the agreement met the criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act. This included ensuring that the agreement was fairly chosen, would not cause financial detriment to employees, and did not substantially change terms of employment without proper consultation. The court also needed to confirm that the agreement was appropriately covered by the bargaining representative, the National Union of Workers.

Commissioner Roe found that the applicant had provided written undertakings that satisfied the requirements of the Act. The court was satisfied that the agreement would not cause financial detriment to employees and that the group of employees covered by the agreement was fairly chosen, taking into account the factors in Section 186(3) and (3A). Furthermore, the court noted that the National Union of Workers had given notice under Section 183 of the Act, indicating that it wanted the agreement to cover its members. The court concluded that all relevant sections of the Act were met, and thus, approved the agreement.

The final order of the court was that the Modfix and National Union of Workers Enterprise Agreement 2015 would be approved and would operate from 28 March 2016, with a nominal expiry date of 31 October 2019. This decision was made in accordance with section 54 of the Fair Work Act.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established