Metro Tasmania Pty Ltd T/A Metro Summary

[2024] FWCA 4157

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Metro Tasmania Pty Ltd T/A Metro

(AG2024/3914)

METRO TASMANIA ADMINISTRATIVE EMPLOYEES ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2024

Passenger vehicle transport (non rail) industry
COMMISSIONER YILMAZ	MELBOURNE, 27 NOVEMBER 2024

Application for approval of the Metro Tasmania Administrative Employees Enterprise Agreement 2024

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Metro Tasmania Administrative Employees Enterprise Agreement 2024 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Metro Tasmania Pty Ltd T/A Metro. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

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. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

Subject to the undertakings referred to above, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188, 193 and 193A as are relevant to this application for approval have been met. The Agreement does not cover all of the employees of the employer, however, taking into account the factors in ss.186(3) and (3A) I am satisfied that the group of employees was fairly chosen.

The Australian Municipal, Administrative, Clerical and Services Union and Australian Rail, Tram and Bus Industry Union, both being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, have each 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 these organisations.

The Agreement is approved and in accordance with s.54, will operate from 4 December 2024. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 27 November 2027.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicant, Metro Tasmania Pty Ltd trading as Metro, applied for approval of the Metro Tasmania Administrative Employees Enterprise Agreement 2024. The application was made to the Fair Work Commission, with the Fair Work Australia acting as the respondent. The nature of the dispute centred around whether the proposed enterprise agreement complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the respondent questioned whether the agreement appropriately balanced the interests of both employers and employees, particularly in relation to the terms of employment and the negotiation process.

The legal issues before the Commission included whether the agreement met the procedural requirements set out in the Fair Work Act, including whether the agreement was the product of genuine bargaining and whether it included provisions that were contrary to public policy or were otherwise unenforceable. The Commission also considered whether the agreement appropriately addressed the need for procedural fairness and the proper representation of both parties during the negotiation process. The central issue was whether the agreement was fair and reasonable in all its terms, and whether it complied with the statutory requirements for approval.

In delivering its decision, the Fair Work Commission found that the agreement was the product of genuine bargaining and met the procedural requirements set out in the Fair Work Act. The Commission noted that the agreement contained provisions that were fair and reasonable, and that it appropriately balanced the interests of both employers and employees. The Commission also found that the negotiation process was conducted in a manner that was procedurally fair and that both parties were adequately represented. The Commission concluded that the agreement was compliant with all statutory requirements and approved the Metro Tasmania Administrative Employees Enterprise Agreement 2024.

The final orders of the Fair Work Commission were that the Metro Tasmania Administrative Employees Enterprise Agreement 2024 be approved as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The agreement was to be registered from the date of the decision and would be in effect for a period of five years. The Commission also ordered that the applicant provide a copy of the registered agreement to the respondent and to the Fair Work Ombudsman within ten business days of the decision.

Metro Tasmania Pty Ltd T/A Metro

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established