Linde Material Handling Pty Ltd

[2013] FWCA 5599

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Linde Material Handling Pty Ltd
(AG2013/2271)

AMWU & LINDE MATERIAL HANDLING PTY LTD (VICTORIA) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2013

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER RYAN	MELBOURNE, 12 AUGUST 2013

Application for approval of the AMWU & Linde Material Handling Pty Ltd (Victoria) Enterprise Agreement 2013.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the AMWU & Linde Material Handling Pty Ltd (Victoria) Enterprise Agreement 2013 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) and was made by Linde Material Handling Pty Ltd. The agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and 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. As required by s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54(1), will operate from 19 August 2013. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2016.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the matter of the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union and Linde Material Handling Pty Ltd, the Australian Industrial Relations Commission was called upon to approve the Enterprise Agreement between the parties, dated 2013. The application for approval arose from the dispute between the union, representing the employees of Linde, and the company regarding the terms and conditions of employment as outlined in the proposed agreement.

The legal issues before the Commission centred on whether the Enterprise Agreement met the requirements under the Fair Work Act 2009, specifically focusing on the process of its negotiation, the fairness of its terms, and whether it complied with the mandatory provisions of the Act. Additionally, the Commission needed to consider whether the agreement was appropriately certified by the relevant industrial officers and if it met the criteria for being a bona fide enterprise agreement.

In determining the application, the Commission examined the evidence presented regarding the negotiation process and the nature of the agreement's terms. It found that the agreement was genuinely negotiated and contained provisions that were fair and reasonable. The Commission also confirmed that the agreement was appropriately certified and met all the statutory requirements for approval. Consequently, the application was successful, and the Enterprise Agreement was approved. The court's decision was based on the comprehensive analysis of the agreement's contents, the negotiation process, and the compliance with legislative standards.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established