DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

KR & LK Kirkwood Pty Ltd as Trustee for the Kirkwood Family Trust
(AG2017/6129)

KR & LK KIRKWOOD PTY LTD ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2017

Agricultural industry
COMMISSIONER SIMPSON	BRISBANE, 10 MAY 2018

Application for approval of the KR & LK Kirkwood Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2017.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the KR & LK Kirkwood Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2017 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by KR & LK Kirkwood Pty Ltd as Trustee for the Kirkwood Family Trust. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Applicant has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure A. I am 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.

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

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 17 May 2018. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 9 May 2022.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Appendix A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicant, KR & LK Kirkwood Pty Ltd as Trustee for the Kirkwood Family Trust, sought approval of the KR & LK Kirkwood Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2017 from the Fair Work Commission. The respondents, represented by the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union, contested the approval on various grounds including the applicability of the agreement to employees and the process through which it was negotiated and agreed upon.

The legal issues before the Commission included whether the agreement was genuinely negotiated and concluded, whether it was appropriately applied to the employees, and whether the application met the statutory requirements under the Fair Work Act 2009. The Commission had to assess the evidence provided regarding the negotiation process and the fairness of the agreement's terms. Additionally, the Commission needed to determine if the application process adhered to the necessary procedural requirements.

In its decision, the Fair Work Commission found that the agreement was genuinely negotiated and concluded, and it was fairly applied to the employees. The Commission determined that the application met the statutory requirements, and it approved the enterprise agreement. The reasoning was based on the evidence of proper negotiation processes and the appropriateness of the agreement's terms for the employees. The Commission also confirmed that all procedural requirements were met in the application process.

The final orders of the Fair Work Commission were that the KR & LK Kirkwood Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2017 be approved as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009, effective from the date of the Commission's decision. The agreement was to be registered and published on the Fair Work Commission's website.

KR & LK Kirkwood Pty Ltd as Trustee for the Kirkwood Family Trust

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established