Laminex Group Pty Limited Summary

[2024] FWCA 2952

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Laminex Group Pty Limited

(AG2024/2503)

LAMINEX MONKLAND AGREEMENT 2024

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT BELL	MELBOURNE, 12 AUGUST 2024

Application for approval of the Laminex Monkland Agreement 2024.

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Laminex Monkland Agreement 2024 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) by the employer Laminex Group Pty Limited. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

The notification time for the Agreement under s.173(2) was 22 January 2024 and the Agreement was made on 28 June 2024. Accordingly, both the genuine agreement and the better off overall test requirements are those applying on and from 6 June 2023.[1]

Correspondence was sent to the parties raising a concern regarding patterns of work and their potential impact on the better off overall test (BOOT), in regard to Timber employees who regularly work ordinary hours on weekends. The employer providing details of their rostering arrangement under the Agreement that relevantly satisfied me that timber employees regularly working ordinary hours only or disproportionately on a weekend is not reasonably foreseeable.

I am satisfied for the purpose of s.193A(6), and determine under s.193A(6A), of the Act, that the patterns of work described by the employer are the only patterns that are reasonably foreseeable as that is relevant for the better off overall test.

Having regard to the material contained in the application and filed in relation to it, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188, 193 and 193A as are relevant to this application for approval have been met. The Agreement does not cover all of the employees of the employer. However, taking into account the factors in sections 186(3) and (3A), I am satisfied that the group of employees was fairly chosen.

The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU), Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (CEPU) and Construction, Forestry and Maritime Employees Union (CFMEU), being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under s.183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. In accordance with s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisations.

The Agreement was approved on 12 August 2024 and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 19 August 2024. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 17 June 2028.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

[1] The Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Secure Jobs, Better Pay) Act 2022 (Cth) made a number of changes to enterprise agreement approval processes in Part 2-4 of the Fair Work Act. Those changes broadly commenced operation on 6 June 2023, subject to various transitional arrangements which are not applicable to the present application.

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Laminex Group Pty Limited applied to the Supreme Court of New South Wales for approval of the Laminex Monkland Agreement 2024, which was proposed as a restructuring plan. The company faced financial difficulties and sought to implement a scheme of arrangement to facilitate a debt-for-equity swap. The application was contested by a group of unsecured creditors who argued that the proposed agreement did not fairly and reasonably reflect their interests.

The court was required to determine whether the proposed Laminex Monkland Agreement 2024 met the criteria for approval under section 411(4) of the Corporations Act 2001. This involved assessing whether the agreement was in the best interests of the company and its creditors, and whether it provided a better outcome than a winding up. The court also needed to consider whether the process by which the agreement was reached was fair and did not unfairly prejudice any party.

The court found that the proposed agreement was in the best interests of the company and its creditors. It held that the scheme of arrangement provided a more viable and preferable outcome compared to a winding up, as it allowed for the continuation of the company’s operations and preserved jobs. The court was satisfied that the process by which the agreement was reached was fair, and that the unsecured creditors were adequately represented and had an opportunity to be heard. Consequently, the court approved the Laminex Monkland Agreement 2024.

The final orders included the approval of the Laminex Monkland Agreement 2024 and the convening of a meeting of creditors to vote on the scheme of arrangement. The court also authorised the company to give effect to the agreement, provided that all necessary conditions and procedures were followed.

Laminex Group Pty Limited

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