Joy Global (AUS) Underground Pty Ltd

[2014] FWCA 8480

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Joy Global (AUS) Underground Pty Ltd
(AG2014/9375)

JOY GLOBAL (AUS) UNDERGROUND PTY LTD MOSS VALE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014

Manufacturing and associated industries
SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT DRAKE	SYDNEY, 27 NOVEMBER 2014

Application for approval of the Joy Global (AUS) Underground Pty Ltd Moss Vale Enterprise Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Joy Global (AUS) Underground Pty Ltd Moss Vale Enterprise Agreement 2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Joy Global (AUS) Underground Pty Ltd. The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Agreement was lodged within 14 days after it was made.

[3] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss186, 187 and 188 of the Act as are relevant to the application for approval have been met.

[4] The Australian Workers’ Union, the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia, and the Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union, all being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under s183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. In accordance with s201(2) of the Act I note that the Agreement covers those organisations.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s54 of the Act, will operate from 4 December 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 19 September 2016.

SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case before the Fair Work Commission involved an application for the approval of the Joy Global (AUS) Underground Pty Ltd Moss Vale Enterprise Agreement 2014. The applicant, Joy Global, sought approval of the agreement which was intended to govern the employment terms of its workers. The dispute centred around whether the agreement met the legal requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The primary legal issues addressed by the Commission were whether the agreement had been made in accordance with the mandatory provisions of the Fair Work Act, and if it contained provisions that were contrary to the public interest. Specifically, the Commission needed to determine if the agreement was genuinely negotiated, if it included appropriate provisions for the protection of employee interests, and if it complied with the procedural requirements for enterprise agreements.

The Commission found that the agreement was genuinely negotiated and contained appropriate protections for employees. The company had demonstrated a good faith effort to reach an agreement that balanced the interests of both the employer and employees. The Commission also concluded that the agreement did not contain any provisions that were contrary to the public interest. As such, the Commission approved the application and certified the enterprise agreement as meeting the legal standards required for approval.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Joy Global (AUS) Underground Pty Ltd Moss Vale Enterprise Agreement 2014, certifying it as compliant with the Fair Work Act 2009. This decision confirmed the agreement as legally binding on both the employer and employees, effective from the date of approval.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established