DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Mercy Health and Aged Care Central Queensland Limited
(AG2015/3606)

MERCY HEALTH AND AGED CARE CENTRAL QUEENSLAND LIMITED - HOSPITALITY AND SERVICES - ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014-2016

Health and welfare services
COMMISSIONER SIMPSON	BRISBANE, 30 JUNE 2015

Application for approval of the Mercy Health and Aged Care Central Queensland Limited - Hospitality and Services - Enterprise Agreement 2014-2016.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Mercy Health and Aged Care Central Queensland Limited - Hospitality and Services - Enterprise Agreement 2014-2016 (the Agreement). The Application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Mercy Health and Aged Care Central Queensland Limited. 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 Australian Workers’ Union (AWU) being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, have given notice under s.183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. In accordance with s.201(2) of the Act, I note that the Agreement covers this organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and will operate in accordance with s.54 of the Act.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Mercy Health and Aged Care Central Queensland Limited applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of its proposed enterprise agreement. The application was made under the Fair Work Act 2009, and the relevant enterprise was the Mercy Health and Aged Care Central Queensland Limited. The nature of the dispute involved the terms and conditions of employment for employees covered by the proposed enterprise agreement. The court hearing was conducted by the Fair Work Commission.

The central legal issue the court needed to decide was whether the proposed enterprise agreement met the criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act. This required examining whether the agreement provided for the minimum terms and conditions of employment, was free from prohibited content, and met other statutory requirements. The court also needed to consider whether the agreement was made in good faith and whether it complied with the procedural requirements of the Act.

In its decision, the Fair Work Commission found that the proposed enterprise agreement did meet the criteria for approval. The agreement provided for the minimum terms and conditions of employment, was free from prohibited content, and complied with the statutory requirements of the Fair Work Act. The Commission also found that the agreement had been made in good faith and that all procedural requirements had been met. As a result, the Commission approved the application for the proposed enterprise agreement.

The Fair Work Commission ordered that the Mercy Health and Aged Care Central Queensland Limited - Hospitality and Services - Enterprise Agreement 2014-2016 be approved as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act. This decision meant that the agreement could now be used to govern the employment conditions of the employees covered by the agreement, subject to the terms and conditions set out in the approved agreement.

Mercy Health and Aged Care Central Queensland Limited

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established