DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Laminex Pty Ltd T/A Laminex
(AG2016/7562)

LAMINEX LISMORE BRANCH AGREEMENT 2016 - 2019

Timber and paper products industry
COMMISSIONER GREGORY	MELBOURNE, 23 JANUARY 2017

Application for approval of the Laminex Lismore Branch Agreement 2016 - 2019.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Laminex Lismore Branch Agreement 2016 - 2019 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Laminex Pty Ltd T/A Laminex. 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] Pursuant to s.205(2) of the Act, the model consultation term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 30 January 2017. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 23 November 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the Fair Work Commission involved Laminex Pty Ltd, trading as Laminex, and its employees, represented by the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union. The dispute centred on the approval of the Laminex Lismore Branch Agreement 2016-2019. The Commission was tasked with determining whether the agreement met the criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. The application for approval was brought by Laminex, who sought to finalise the terms of employment for the employees at its Lismore branch for the specified period.

The central legal issues for the Commission to decide were whether the agreement was a genuine enterprise agreement and whether it contained provisions that were contrary to the public interest or contrary to the objectives of the Fair Work Act. Specifically, the Commission had to examine whether the agreement complied with the formal requirements under the Act, including the necessity for it to be in writing, to cover a specific enterprise, to be made by the employer and the employees, and to include certain minimum entitlements and protections. Additionally, the Commission needed to ensure that the agreement did not contain any terms that would undermine the safety and health protections of the employees.

In deliberating on the application, the Commission noted that the Laminex Lismore Branch Agreement 2016-2019 was duly executed and satisfied the formal requirements under the Act. It was an agreement between the employer and the employees for the specified period, and it included all the mandated minimum entitlements and protections. The Commission also found that the agreement did not contain any terms that were contrary to the public interest or the objectives of the Fair Work Act. The agreement was considered to be a genuine enterprise agreement, and therefore, it met all the criteria for approval. Consequently, the Commission approved the agreement, confirming its validity and enforceability under the Act.

Laminex Pty Ltd T/A Laminex

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established