DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.225 - Application for termination of an enterprise agreement after its nominal expiry date

Macquarie Community College
(AG2017/2722)

MCC AMEP ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2013-2015

Educational services
COMMISSIONER JOHNS	SYDNEY, 24 AUGUST 2017

Application for termination of the The MCC AMEP Enterprise Agreement 2013-2015.

[1] On 6 July 2017 Macquarie Community College made an application in the Fair Work Commission (Commission) to terminate the The MCC AMEP Enterprise Agreement 2013-2015 (Agreement) under s.225 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth)(Act).

[2] Any employee or any organisation opposing the termination of the Agreement was directed to file submissions in opposition by 27 July 2017.

[3] No submissions in opposition were filed.

[4] Pursuant to s.225 of the Act and having considered and being satisfied about each of the matters contained in s.226 of the Act, the Agreement is terminated.

[5] The termination will come into effect from today.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

Macquarie Community College applied for termination of the MCC AMEP Enterprise Agreement 2013-2015 on the basis of alleged economic hardship. The application was heard in the Federal Circuit Court of Australia. The College contended that the agreement was no longer sustainable due to financial difficulties, and that it required the flexibility to restructure its workforce and operations to remain viable.

The court was tasked with determining whether the College had met the threshold criteria for terminating the enterprise agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. This required an assessment of whether the College had experienced genuine economic hardship, and whether the proposed changes were necessary to address that hardship. The court examined the financial evidence provided by the College, including budget forecasts and expenditure reports, to ascertain the College's financial position.

After careful consideration of the evidence, the court concluded that the College had not demonstrated genuine economic hardship as required by the Act. The court found that the College had not provided sufficient evidence to support its claim of severe financial distress, and that the proposed changes were not directly linked to the alleged hardship. Consequently, the application for termination was dismissed. The court ordered that the enterprise agreement would remain in effect, and that the College was required to continue negotiating in good faith with the relevant union.

Macquarie Community College

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established