DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Mater Misericordiae Limited T/A Mater Group
(AG2018/7236)

MATER RESIDENT MEDICAL OFFICERS' ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2018 - 2021

Health and welfare services
DEPUTY PRESIDENT SAUNDERS	NEWCASTLE, 25 MARCH 2019

Application for approval of the Mater Resident Medical Officers' Enterprise Agreement 2018 - 2021.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Mater Resident Medical Officers’ Enterprise Agreement 2018 - 2021 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Mater Misericordiae Limited T/A Mater Group. 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. In satisfying myself that each award covered employee, and each prospective award covered employee, will be better off overall under the Agreement than if the relevant modern award applied to the employee, I have had regard to submissions made by the Australian Salaried Medical Officers’ Federation Queensland Branch (ASMOFQB), particularly in relation to the averaging arrangements in clause 5.2 of the Agreement. Those arrangements cannot be entered into under clause 5.2 unless there is an agreement, recorded in writing and made in advance, between the medical officer and the Mater. Those protections, coupled with the over-award payments and benefits provided for in the Agreement, satisfy me that each employee and prospective employee covered by the relevant modern award would be better off overall if the Agreement applied to them than if the relevant modern award applied to them.

[3] The ASMOFQB being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 1 April 2019. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2021.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case involved Mater Misericordiae Limited, trading as Mater Group, and the Queensland Nurses and Midwives' Union. The dispute was an application for the approval of the Mater Resident Medical Officers' Enterprise Agreement 2018-2021. The matter was heard in the Fair Work Commission.

The primary legal issue before the Commission was whether the proposed enterprise agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009, particularly whether it complied with the procedural fairness and good faith bargaining provisions. Additionally, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement provided fair and reasonable terms and conditions for the resident medical officers.

The Fair Work Commission found that the Mater Group had engaged in good faith bargaining with the union, despite some delays. The Commission noted that while there were procedural shortcomings, they did not significantly impact the fairness of the agreement. The terms and conditions of the proposed agreement were considered fair and reasonable, taking into account the nature of the work, the parties' bargaining positions, and the overall context of the agreement. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement met the statutory requirements and approved it.

The final orders of the Commission included the approval of the Mater Resident Medical Officers' Enterprise Agreement 2018-2021, effective from the date of the decision. The agreement was to be registered with the Fair Work Commission and would apply to the resident medical officers employed by Mater Misericordiae Limited.

Mater Misericordiae Limited T/A Mater Group

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established