Microfire Systems Pty Ltd

[2013] FWCA 3439

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

Microfire Systems Pty Ltd
(AG2013/6353)

MICROFIRE SYSTEMS PTY LTD ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT - 2013/2016

Electrical contracting industry
COMMISSIONER SIMPSON	BRISBANE, 31 MAY 2013

Application for approval of the Microfire Systems Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement - 2013/2016.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Microfire Systems Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement - 2013/2016 (the Agreement). The Application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Microfire Systems Pty Ltd. 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 agreement is approved. In accordance with s.54(1) it will operate from 7 June 2013. The nominal expiry date of the agreement is 31 March 2016.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

Microfire Systems Pty Ltd, an employer, sought approval of an enterprise agreement with its employees. The application was made to the Fair Work Commission. The dispute centred around the terms of the proposed agreement and whether it complied with the relevant legislative requirements for enterprise agreements under the Fair Work Act 2009. The employees argued that certain provisions of the agreement were not fair or did not meet the "better off overall test".

The court was required to determine whether the agreement was procedurally and substantively valid. This involved assessing whether the agreement had been made in accordance with the procedural requirements outlined in the Fair Work Act and whether the terms of the agreement met the criteria for approval. Specifically, the court had to examine whether the agreement was made without the influence of prohibited conduct and whether it provided employees with a safety net of minimum wages and conditions.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement was procedurally valid, having been made without any influence of prohibited conduct. The court also determined that the agreement was substantively valid, meeting the "better off overall test". The court was satisfied that the agreement provided employees with a safety net of minimum wages and conditions and did not contain any unfair terms. As such, the court approved the enterprise agreement. The court ordered that the Microfire Systems Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement - 2013/2016 be approved as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established