Metso Outotec Australia Limited T/A Metso Outotec Australia Limited

[2022] FWCA 617

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Metso Outotec Australia Limited T/A Metso Outotec Australia Limited

(AG2021/9189)

Metso Outotec Limited - Tomago Enterprise Agreement 2021

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT EASTON	SYDNEY, 22 FEBRUARY 2022

Application for approval of the Metso Outotec Limited - Tomago Enterprise Agreement 2021.

Metso Outotec Australia Limited T/A Metso Outotec Australia Limited (the Employer) has made an application for the approval of the Metso Outotec Limited - Tomago Enterprise Agreement 2021 (the Agreement). The application was made under s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

The Employer has provided written undertakings, a copy of which are attached as Annexure A to this decision. The undertakings can be accepted under s.190 of the Act because I am satisfied that they will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the agreement pursuant to s.191 of the Act.

Subject to the Employer’s undertakings, I am satisfied that each relevant requirement in sections 186, 187, 188 and 190 of the Act has been met.

I note that Clause 19.5 – Public Holidays and Clause 22.2(a) – Redundancy are potentially inconsistent with the National Employment Standards (NES). Noting the undertaking provided by the Employer, I am satisfied that the more beneficial entitlements of the NES will prevail where there is an inconsistency between the Agreement and the NES.

The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) was a bargaining representative for the Agreement and 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 AMWU.
The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 1 March 2022. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 March 2023.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Metso Outotec Australia Limited T/A Metso Outotec Australia Limited applied to the Fair Work Commission for the approval of the Metso Outotec Limited - Tomago Enterprise Agreement 2021. The applicant sought to have the agreement registered as a single interest employer agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The application was made on the basis that the agreement had been made in accordance with the Act and met the criteria for approval.

The legal issues before the Commission were whether the agreement had been made in accordance with the Act and whether it met the criteria for approval. Specifically, the Commission needed to determine whether the agreement had been made freely and voluntarily by the parties, whether it contained the prescribed minimum terms and conditions, and whether it was in the best interests of the employees covered by the agreement.

The Commission found that the agreement had been made freely and voluntarily by the parties and contained the prescribed minimum terms and conditions. The Commission also found that the agreement was in the best interests of the employees covered by the agreement. The Commission noted that the agreement provided for a number of benefits for employees, including improved wages and conditions, and that these benefits outweighed any potential disadvantages of the agreement. The Commission was also satisfied that the agreement had been negotiated in good faith and that the parties had made a genuine attempt to reach an agreement.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Metso Outotec Limited - Tomago Enterprise Agreement 2021 as a single interest employer agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The agreement was registered on the date of the decision.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established