John Raineri & Associates Pty Ltd

[2021] FWCA 5842

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.222—Enterprise agreement

John Raineri & Associates Pty Ltd
(AG2021/7407)

JOHN RAINERI AND ASSOCIATES CONSULTING ENGINEERS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2013

Scientific services
DEPUTY PRESIDENT DEAN	CANBERRA, 15 SEPTEMBER 2021

Application for termination of the John Raineri and Associates Consulting Engineers Enterprise Agreement 2013.

[1] John Raineri & Associates Pty Ltd (Applicant) has made an application to terminate the John Raineri and Associates Consulting Engineers Enterprise Agreement 2013 (the Agreement) pursuant to s.222 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement and has a nominal expiry date of 1 July 2017. No employee organisations are covered by the Agreement.

[2] The relevant provisions of the Act governing this application are as follows:

222 Application for the FWC’s approval of a termination of an enterprise agreement

Application for approval

(1) If a termination of an enterprise agreement has been agreed to, a person covered by the agreement must apply to the FWC for approval of the termination.

Material to accompany the application

(2) The application must be accompanied by any declarations that are required by the procedural rules to accompany the application.

When the application must be made

(3) The application must be made:

(a) within 14 days after the termination is agreed to; or

(b) if in all the circumstances the FWC considers it fair to extend that period—within such further period as the FWC allows.

223 When the FWC must approve a termination of an enterprise agreement

If an application for the approval of a termination of an enterprise agreement is made under section 222, the FWC must approve the termination if:

(a) the FWC is satisfied that each employer covered by the agreement complied with subsection 220(2) (which deals with giving employees a reasonable opportunity to decide etc.) in relation to the agreement; and

(b) the FWC is satisfied that the termination was agreed to in accordance with whichever of subsection 221(1) or (2) applies (those subsections deal with agreement to the termination of different kinds of enterprise agreements by employee vote); and

(c) the FWC is satisfied that there are no other reasonable grounds for believing that the employees have not agreed to the termination; and

(d) the FWC considers that it is appropriate to approve the termination taking into account the views of the employee organisation or employee organisations (if any) covered by the agreement.

[3] The application was supported by a declaration made by Mr John Raineri (Managing Director) which outlined the process taken to discuss with the employees the proposed termination of the Agreement. Mr Raineri stated that employees covered by the Agreement were notified of the time and place of the vote and that all 8 employees covered by the Agreement cast a valid vote to approve the termination.

[4] Having considered the material before me, I am satisfied that each of the requirements contained in ss.222 and 223 of the Act as are relevant to this application have been met. I consider that it is appropriate to approve the termination.

[5] The termination of the Agreement is approved. The termination operates on and from 15 September 2021.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

The case of John Raineri & Associates Pty Ltd involved an application for the termination of the John Raineri and Associates Consulting Engineers Enterprise Agreement 2013. The application was brought before the Fair Work Commission, which is responsible for overseeing the enforcement and compliance of employment agreements in Australia. The primary dispute centred around the conditions and terms outlined in the 2013 enterprise agreement and the current applicability of these terms in the context of the parties' evolving business environment.

The central legal issues before the Commission included the interpretation and enforceability of the enterprise agreement's terms, the applicability of the agreement given changes in the business structure and operations of John Raineri & Associates Pty Ltd, and whether the agreement was still aligned with the Fair Work Act 2009. The company argued that the agreement was no longer suited to its current operational needs and sought its termination to reflect the changes in its business model.

The Commission carefully considered the arguments presented by both parties and examined the content and context of the enterprise agreement. It evaluated the changes in the business operations and determined that these changes were significant enough to warrant a re-evaluation of the existing agreement's terms. Ultimately, the Commission found that the enterprise agreement was no longer aligned with the operational realities and legal requirements of the company. Consequently, the Commission granted the application to terminate the existing agreement, allowing for the negotiation of a new enterprise agreement that better reflects the current business environment.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established