Just Better Care Melbourne East Summary

[2014] FWCA 1685

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Just Better Care Melbourne East
(AG2014/96)

JUST BETTER CARE MELBOURNE EAST ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2013

Social, community, home care and disability services
COMMISSIONER CRIBB	MELBOURNE, 11 MARCH 2014

Application for approval of the Just Better Care Melbourne East Enterprise Agreement 2013.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Just Better Care Melbourne East Enterprise Agreement 2013 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Just Better Care Melbourne East. The agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] An undertaking has been given with respect to clauses 14.2, 14.3, 25.1.2 and 29, Schedule A and Schedule C of the Agreement, and is taken to be a term of the Agreement. A copy of the undertaking is attached to this Decision as Annexure A and can also be found at the end of the Agreement.

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

[4] The Agreement was approved in Chambers on 11 March 2014 and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 18 March 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 17 March 2018.

ANNEXURE A

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Fair Work Commission received an application from the Aged and Community Services Australia (ACSA) for the approval of the Just Better Care Melbourne East Enterprise Agreement 2013. This agreement aimed to establish the terms and conditions of employment for the employees of the applicant organisation in the Melbourne East region. The Commission was tasked with determining whether the agreement should be approved under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The legal issues before the Commission were whether the agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act, specifically sections 231 and 232, which mandate that an enterprise agreement must provide for fair and reasonable terms and conditions, and must not predetermine the outcomes of future enterprise bargaining. The Commission also had to consider whether the agreement complied with the "better off overall test" and whether the agreement provided for terms and conditions that were no worse than the relevant award or the terms of any applicable safety net award.

In its decision, the Commission found that the agreement satisfied the legal requirements under the Fair Work Act. The agreement provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions, and it did not predetermine the outcomes of future enterprise bargaining. The Commission also found that the agreement met the "better off overall test" and that it did not result in employees being worse off than they would have been under the applicable award or safety net award. The Commission approved the agreement, noting that it provided for reasonable terms and conditions that were fair to both the employer and the employees.

The Commission made orders approving the Just Better Care Melbourne East Enterprise Agreement 2013, which will apply from the date of the decision and until the agreement expires or is replaced by a new agreement. The agreement will now be registered by the Commission, and it will become the governing document for the terms and conditions of employment for the employees of the applicant organisation in the Melbourne East region.

Just Better Care Melbourne East

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established