Jalna Dairy Foods Pty Ltd

[2022] FWCA 2401

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Jalna Dairy Foods Pty Ltd

(AG2022/2287)

Jalna Dairy Foods Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2022-2025

Food, beverages and tobacco manufacturing industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT YOUNG	MELBOURNE, 18 JULY 2022

Application for approval of the Jalna Dairy Foods Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2022-2025

Jalna Dairy Foods Pty Ltd (the Employer) has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Jalna Dairy Foods Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2022-2025 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

The copy of the Notice of Employee Representational Rights (NERR) provided to employees referred to the Agreement as the Jalna Dairy Foods Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement but omitted the dates in the Agreement title. The Employer provided submissions as to this error on 14 July 2022. I am satisfied having regard to those submissions and the Full Bench decision in Huntsman Chemical Company Australia Pty Ltd T/A RMAX Rigid Cellular Plastics & Others[1] (Huntsman) that this constitutes a minor technical or procedural error for the purposes of s 188(2)(a) of Act. Further, I am satisfied that employees were not likely to have been disadvantaged by this error.

Accordingly, notwithstanding the matters identified in paragraph [2] above, I am satisfied that the Agreement has been genuinely agreed within the meaning of s 188(2).

On the basis of the material contained in the application, the accompanying statutory declaration and the additional information provided by the Employer, 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.

Pursuant to s 205(2) of the Act, the model consultation term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

The United Workers’ Union, being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s 183 of the Act that it seeks to be covered by the Agreement. In accordance with s 201(2) and based on the statutory declaration provided by the organisation, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

The Agreement was approved on 18 July 2022 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 25 July 2022. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2025.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

[1] [2019] FWCFB 318

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Jalna Dairy Foods Pty Ltd was the subject of a decision by the Fair Work Commission, where an application for the approval of the Jalna Dairy Foods Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2022-2025 was heard. The dispute involved the company, represented by its employer, and the relevant union, which represented the employees. The union had applied for the approval of the proposed enterprise agreement, which aimed to establish the terms and conditions of employment for the employees of Jalna Dairy Foods Pty Ltd over the specified period.

The primary legal issue before the Commission was whether the proposed enterprise agreement complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009. This involved examining whether the agreement met the criteria for being a "registered" agreement, including whether it was in writing, provided for the resolution of any existing disputes between the parties, and contained provisions that complied with the "better off overall test" (BOOT). This test required that the agreement be at least as favourable to the employees as the applicable awards and that it did not unfairly disadvantage some employees relative to others.

The Commission assessed the proposed agreement against these criteria and found that it complied with the requirements of the Act. The agreement was in writing, contained provisions for the resolution of disputes, and the Commission determined that it met the BOOT. The Commission concluded that the proposed agreement provided for a fair and reasonable set of terms and conditions for the employees of Jalna Dairy Foods Pty Ltd, and it approved the agreement as a registered enterprise agreement.

The Commission's approval of the Jalna Dairy Foods Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2022-2025 meant that the agreement would now govern the employment conditions of the employees covered by the agreement. The decision ensured that the agreement provided a fair and reasonable outcome for both the employer and the employees, while also complying with the requirements 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