DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

Komatsu Australia Pty Ltd
(AG2018/5990)

KOMATSU AUSTRALIA SYDNEY SERVICE & ASSEMBLY DEPARTMENTS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2018

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER RIORDAN	SYDNEY, 25 MARCH 2019

Application for approval of the Komatsu Australia Sydney Service & Assembly Departments Enterprise Agreement 2018.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Komatsu Australia Sydney Service & Assembly Departments Enterprise Agreement 2018 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Komatsu Australia Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] 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.

[3] The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing & Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU) 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) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 1 April 2019. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 March 2021.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicants, Komatsu Australia Pty Ltd, sought approval of the Komatsu Australia Sydney Service & Assembly Departments Enterprise Agreement 2018. The application was brought before the Fair Work Commission. The application for approval was opposed by the respondents, the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union (AMWU) and the Australian Workers' Union (AWU). The legal issues before the Commission were whether the agreement complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009, including whether it was made in good faith and whether it provided for the matters it purported to cover.

The Commission examined the nature and extent of the negotiations that had occurred between the parties, the substance of the agreement, and the manner in which it was formed. The Commission found that the agreement was made in good faith and that it covered the matters it purported to cover. The Commission noted that the agreement contained a number of provisions that went beyond the minimum entitlements required by the Fair Work Act, such as provisions for additional leave entitlements and a more generous redundancy scheme. The Commission also found that the agreement had been formed through a process of genuine consultation and negotiation between the parties.

The Commission approved the application for approval of the agreement. The Commission found that the agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act and was in the best interests of the employees covered by the agreement. The Commission noted that the agreement provided for a number of benefits to employees, including additional leave entitlements and a more generous redundancy scheme. The Commission also noted that the agreement provided for a process for resolving disputes between the parties, which was in the best interests of both the employer and the employees.

Komatsu Australia Pty Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established