Kurrajong & Dist Hospital Soc Inc Summary

[2024] FWCA 1445

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Kurrajong & Dist Hospital Soc Inc

(AG2024/636)

KURRAJONG & DISTRICT COMMUNITY NURSING HOME, NSWNMA AND HSU NSW ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2023

Aged Care Industry
COMMISSIONER CRAWFORD	SYDNEY, 19 APRIL 2024

Application for approval of the Kurrajong & District Community Nursing Home, NSWNMA and HSU NSW Enterprise Agreement 2023

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Kurrajong & District Community Nursing Home, NSWNMA and HSU NSW Enterprise Agreement 2023 (Agreement). The Application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (FW Act). It has been made by Kurrajong & Dist Hospital Soc Inc (Applicant). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

The Applicant has provided written undertakings. 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.

Subject to the undertakings referred to above, I am satisfied that each requirement of ss.186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

Noting clause 8.2 of the Agreement, I am satisfied that the more beneficial entitlements of the NES in the FW Act will prevail where there is an inconsistency between the Agreement and the NES.

The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF) and the Health Services Union (HSU) lodged Form F18 statutory declarations giving notice under s.183 of the FW Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. In accordance with s.201(2) of the FW Act, I note the Agreement covers the ANMF and the HSU.

The Agreement is approved and will operate from seven days after approval in accordance with s.54 of the FW Act. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 August 2025.

COMMISSIONER
Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Kurrajong & District Hospital Society Inc applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Kurrajong & District Community Nursing Home, NSWNMA and HSU NSW Enterprise Agreement 2023. The hospital, a non-profit organisation, had entered into the enterprise agreement with the NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association and the Health Services Union of NSW. The application sought the commission’s approval of the agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute centred on whether the agreement complied with the statutory requirements for approval and whether it met the “better off overall test” under the Act. The commission had to consider if the agreement provided employees with a “fair and better” outcome than if they were subject to the applicable award or safety net.

The commission examined the provisions of the agreement, particularly those relating to remuneration, conditions, and the process for resolving disputes. The hospital argued that the agreement provided significant benefits to its employees, including wage increases, improved conditions, and better dispute resolution mechanisms. The unions supported the agreement, asserting it was fair and better than the safety net. The commission needed to decide if the agreement offered a “fair and better” outcome for employees and if it complied with all statutory requirements.

After a thorough analysis of the agreement, the commission determined that the agreement did provide a “fair and better” outcome for the employees and complied with the statutory requirements for approval. The commission found that the agreement included provisions for increased wages, improved working conditions, and enhanced dispute resolution processes, all of which were beneficial to the employees. The commission also noted that the agreement had been negotiated in good faith and was not detrimental to the safety net. Consequently, the commission approved the enterprise agreement.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Kurrajong & District Community Nursing Home, NSWNMA and HSU NSW Enterprise Agreement 2023, finding it to be fair and better for employees and in compliance with the statutory requirements.

Kurrajong & Dist Hospital Soc Inc

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established