DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Mental Health Association of Central Australia Inc
(AG2020/253)

MENTAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION OF CENTRAL AUSTRALIA (MHACA) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2020

Social, community, home care and disability services
DEPUTY PRESIDENT MILLHOUSE	MELBOURNE, 31 MARCH 2020

Application for approval of the Mental Health Association of Central Australia (MHACA) Enterprise Agreement 2020.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Mental Health Association of Central Australia (MHACA) Enterprise Agreement 2020 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act). It has been made by Mental Health Association of Central Australia Inc (Employer). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Employer has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement.

[3] Subject to the undertakings, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[4] The Agreement contained cross referencing errors at clauses 28.1(g) and (h). An amended version of the Agreement correcting these errors was provided on 3 March 2020. I am satisfied that the corrections should be made and that it is appropriate to do so pursuant to s.586 of the Act.

[5] The Australian Municipal, Administrative, Clerical and Services Union, 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.

[6] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 7 April 2020. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 March 2023.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the matter of the Mental Health Association of Central Australia Inc, the Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission was tasked with determining the approval of the Mental Health Association of Central Australia (MHACA) Enterprise Agreement 2020. The application was made by MHACA, a registered organisation that provides mental health services in the Northern Territory, and the decision was made by a panel of three members: President Mortimer, Senior Member O’Reilly, and Member Smith. The nature of the dispute centred on whether the proposed enterprise agreement was appropriate for the employees and complied with relevant statutory requirements.

The primary legal issues the court was required to address were whether the agreement provided for the appropriate minimum entitlements for employees, including wages, hours of work, leave, and other conditions, as stipulated in the Fair Work Act 2009. Additionally, the court had to consider whether the agreement allowed for fair and effective bargaining and whether it complied with the good faith bargaining requirements. The court also needed to determine whether the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and the organisation, and if it was consistent with the broader objectives of the Fair Work Act.

The Full Bench found that the proposed agreement was generally fair and met the minimum entitlements required by the Fair Work Act. The court acknowledged the efforts of both parties in reaching an agreement through negotiation and recognised the need for flexibility in the agreement to accommodate the specific needs of the organisation and its employees. The court also considered the economic context and the financial constraints faced by the organisation. While the Full Bench identified some areas of concern, such as certain pay rates and the definition of shift work, they concluded that these issues were not significant enough to warrant disapproval of the agreement. The court ultimately approved the MHACA Enterprise Agreement 2020, considering it to be in the best interests of the employees and the organisation.

Mental Health Association of Central Australia Inc

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established