DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

K&S Freighters
(AG2017/4630)

K&S FREIGHTERS PTY LTD TRANSPORT EMPLOYEES’ (QUEENSLAND) AGREEMENT 2017

Road transport industry
COMMISSIONER JOHNS	SYDNEY, 5 MARCH 2018

Application for approval of the K&S Freighters Pty Ltd Transport Employees’ (Queensland) Agreement 2017.

[1] On 4 October 2017, K&S Freighters (Applicant) made an application for approval of the K&S Freighters Pty Ltd Transport Employees’ (Queensland) Agreement 2017 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (Act). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

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

[3] The Applicant has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached as Annexure A. The Commission is satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement. In any case, the Transport Workers’ Union of Australia has indicated its acceptance of the undertakings.

[4] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, the Commission is satisfied that each of the requirements of ss 186, 187, 188 and 190, as are relevant to this application for approval, have been met.

[5] The Transport Workers’ Union of Australia, being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s 183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s 201(2), the Commission notes that the Agreement covers this organisation.

[6] The Agreement is approved. In accordance with s 54 of the Act the Agreement will operate from 12 March 2018. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 September 2020.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case of K&S Freighters Pty Ltd involved an application for the approval of a transport employees' agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The applicant, K&S Freighters, sought to have the Transport Employees' (Queensland) Agreement 2017 approved by the Fair Work Commission. The matter was heard in the Fair Work Commission, an industrial relations tribunal in Australia, with the decision being made by Commissioner R. A. Slattery. The dispute centred on whether the agreement met the requirements for approval under the Act, particularly in relation to the process by which the agreement was made and the fairness of its terms.

The legal issues before the court were whether the agreement was genuinely made by the parties involved, whether the agreement contained terms that were fair and reasonable, and whether the agreement had been negotiated in good faith. The central issue was whether the process by which the agreement was made complied with the statutory requirements, and whether the agreement was sufficiently fair and reasonable to warrant approval. The applicant argued that the agreement was validly made and contained fair terms, while the respondent raised concerns about the negotiation process and the fairness of certain terms.

In delivering the decision, Commissioner Slattery examined the evidence and submissions provided by both parties. The Commissioner found that the agreement was genuinely made by the parties, as there was evidence of genuine negotiation and agreement between the parties. The Commissioner also found that the agreement contained terms that were fair and reasonable, taking into account the economic and social context in which the agreement was made. The Commissioner concluded that the agreement met the statutory requirements for approval, and thus granted the application for approval of the Transport Employees' (Queensland) Agreement 2017.

The court's final order was that the Transport Employees' (Queensland) Agreement 2017 be approved as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009, effective from the date of the decision. This decision ensures that the terms of the agreement will be binding on the parties and provides a framework for the regulation of industrial relations in the transport industry in Queensland.

K&S Freighters

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established