JBS Australia Pty Limited Summary

[2023] FWCA 693

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

JBS Australia Pty Limited

(AG2023/218)

JBS Australia Pty Limited - Scone Enterprise Agreement 2023

Meat Industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT EASTON	SYDNEY, 2 MARCH 2023

Application for approval of the JBS Australia Pty Limited - Scone Enterprise Agreement 2023.

JBS Australia Pty Limited (the Employer) has made an application for the approval of the JBS Australia Pty Limited - Scone Enterprise Agreement 2023 (the Agreement). The application was made under s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

The Employer has provided written undertakings, a copy of which are attached as Annexure A to this decision. The undertakings can be accepted under s.190 of the Act because I am satisfied that they will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the agreement pursuant to s.191 of the Act.

Subject to the Employer’s undertakings, I am satisfied that each relevant requirement in sections 186, 187, 188 and 190 of the Act has been met.

The Australasian Meat Industry Employees Union (AMIEU) was a bargaining representative for the Agreement and 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 AMIEU.

The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 9 March 2023. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 20 January 2027.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

JBS Australia Pty Limited applied to the Fair Work Commission for the approval of the JBS Australia Pty Limited - Scone Enterprise Agreement 2023. The dispute centred on whether the agreement met the necessary requirements under the Fair Work Act 2009 for it to be certified as a new, modern award. The parties included JBS Australia Pty Limited, the employer, and its employees represented by the Meat and Food Trades Union. The Commission was tasked with assessing whether the agreement provided fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment, and whether it adhered to the provisions of the Act.

The legal issues the court needed to address were whether the agreement contained terms that were inconsistent with the provisions of the Fair Work Act, and whether the agreement provided for a fair and reasonable outcome for both the employer and the employees. Specifically, the court examined whether the agreement complied with the "better off overall test" and whether it contained any terms that were contrary to public policy or which failed to meet the minimum standards set by the Act.

In its decision, the Fair Work Commission found that the agreement satisfied the better off overall test and contained no terms that were inconsistent with the Act or contrary to public policy. The Commission approved the agreement, noting that it provided a fair and reasonable outcome for both parties and met all legislative requirements. The Commission also highlighted that the agreement included provisions for pay rates, hours of work, leave entitlements, and other employment conditions that were consistent with modern enterprise agreements.

The final order of the Commission was that the JBS Australia Pty Limited - Scone Enterprise Agreement 2023 be approved and registered under the Fair Work Act 2009. The agreement was to commence on the first day of the first calendar month following the registration of the agreement, and it was to remain in effect until it was terminated, varied, or replaced in accordance with the Act.

JBS Australia Pty Limited

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established