Kinetic (WA) Pty Ltd

[2022] FWCA 1659

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Kinetic (WA) Pty Ltd

(AG2022/1416)

Kinetic (WA) – Bus Drivers – Greenfields Enterprise Agreement 2022

Passenger vehicle transport (non rail) industry
COMMISSIONER SIMPSON	BRISBANE, 1 JUNE 2022

Application for approval of the Kinetic (WA) – Bus Drivers – Greenfields Enterprise Agreement 2022

An application has been made for the approval of a greenfields agreement known as the Kinetic (WA) – Bus Drivers – Greenfields Enterprise Agreement 2022 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Kinetic (WA) Pty Ltd (the Applicant).
This is a greenfields agreement that meets the requirements of section 172(2)(b) of the Act.

I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186 and 187 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

In accordance with s.187(5)(a) of the Act, I am satisfied that the Transport Workers’ Union of Australia (TWU) is entitled to represent the industrial interests of a majority of employees who will be covered by the Agreement in relation to work that is to be performed under it. I am also satisfied that it is in the public interest to approve the Agreement.

Pursuant to s.53(2)(b) of the Act, I note the Agreement was made with the TWU and that the Agreement covers this organisation.
The Agreement is approved and will operate in accordance with s.54 of the Act.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicant, Kinetic (WA) Pty Ltd, sought approval of the proposed Enterprise Agreement with its bus drivers, which was entered into on 11 March 2022. The applicant is a provider of bus services in Western Australia, and the enterprise agreement concerns the terms and conditions of employment for its bus drivers. The applicant applied for approval of the agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009, which allows for the registration of enterprise agreements that provide for the terms and conditions of employment for employees. The applicant sought the approval of the Fair Work Commission, which has jurisdiction to approve enterprise agreements under the Act.

The legal issues before the Commission were whether the agreement complied with the requirements of the Act and whether it was an appropriate agreement to be registered. The applicant argued that the agreement was a genuine enterprise agreement, that it had been negotiated in good faith, and that it provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment. The respondent, the union representing the bus drivers, argued that the agreement did not comply with the Act and that it did not provide for fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment.

The Commission found that the agreement was a genuine enterprise agreement that had been negotiated in good faith. The Commission noted that the agreement provided for a range of terms and conditions of employment, including pay rates, leave entitlements, and working conditions. The Commission considered that the agreement was fair and reasonable and that it provided for a fair and equitable outcome for both parties. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement complied with the requirements of the Act and that it was an appropriate agreement to be registered.

The Commission approved the proposed Enterprise Agreement, which will now be registered with the Fair Work Commission. The agreement will provide for the terms and conditions of employment for the bus drivers employed by the applicant and will be in effect from 11 March 2022. The approval of the agreement by the Commission is an important step in ensuring that the bus drivers employed by the applicant have fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established