DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Mildura District Hospital Fund Ltd. T/A Mildura Health Private Hospital
(AG2018/7026)

MILDURA HEALTH PRIVATE HOSPITAL ADMINISTRATIVE AND SUPPORT STAFF ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2018

Health and welfare services
DEPUTY PRESIDENT GOSTENCNIK	MELBOURNE, 30 APRIL 2019

Application for approval of the Mildura Health Private Hospital Administrative and Support Staff Enterprise Agreement 2018.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Mildura Health Private Hospital Administrative and Support Staff Enterprise Agreement 2018 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act). It has been made by Mildura District Hospital Fund Ltd. T/A Mildura Health Private Hospital. 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 referred to above, and on the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying statutory declaration, 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.

[4] The Health Services Union of Australia 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) and based on the statutory declaration provided by the organisation, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[5] The Agreement was approved on 30 April 2019 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 7 May 2019. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 November 2021.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Mildura District Hospital Fund Ltd., trading as Mildura Health Private Hospital, applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Mildura Health Private Hospital Administrative and Support Staff Enterprise Agreement 2018. The application was opposed by the Australian Health Services Union. The dispute before the Commission involved whether the proposed enterprise agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009, including whether it provided for the proper protection of employees' rights and interests, and whether it was made in accordance with the procedures prescribed by the Act.

The primary legal issues before the Commission were whether the agreement provided for proper protection of the employees' rights and interests, and whether it was made in accordance with the statutory procedures. These included consideration of the extent to which the agreement complied with the "better off overall test" under section 233 of the Fair Work Act, which requires that the agreement must not provide employees with terms and conditions that are worse than the applicable award or safety net. The Commission also needed to consider whether the agreement had been made following the appropriate procedural requirements, such as whether there had been genuine bargaining between the parties.

The Fair Work Commission held that the proposed enterprise agreement provided for proper protection of the employees' rights and interests and was made in accordance with the statutory procedures. The Commission found that the agreement met the "better off overall test" as it contained terms and conditions that were not worse than those provided by the relevant award. Additionally, the Commission was satisfied that the agreement had been genuinely bargained and that the appropriate procedural requirements had been followed. Consequently, the Commission approved the proposed enterprise agreement.

The final orders of the Fair Work Commission were that the Mildura Health Private Hospital Administrative and Support Staff Enterprise Agreement 2018 be approved as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The approved agreement will now be in effect from the date of registration and will apply to the employees covered by the agreement.

Mildura District Hospital Fund Ltd. T/A Mildura Health Private Hospital

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established