Mono Pumps (Australia) Pty Ltd

[2013] FWCA 2990

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Mono Pumps (Australia) Pty Ltd
(AG2013/836)

MONO PUMPS (AUSTRALIA) PTY. LTD. ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2013

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER RYAN	MELBOURNE, 10 MAY 2013

Application for approval of the Mono Pumps (Australia) Pty. Ltd. Enterprise Agreement 2013.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Mono Pumps (Australia) Pty. Ltd. Enterprise Agreement 2013 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) and was made by Mono Pumps (Australia) 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] An undertaking has been given in relation to clause 14 of the Agreement and this undertaking has become a term of the Agreement in accordance with s.191(2) of the Act and is appended at Appendix A.

[4] The National Union of Workers and the “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU), being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover them. As required by s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers those organisations.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54(1), will operate from 17 May 2013. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 331 December 2015.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the matter of the Fair Work Commission, the applicant, Mono Pumps (Australia) Pty Ltd, sought approval of the Mono Pumps (Australia) Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2013. The respondent, the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union, raised objections to the agreement, arguing that it did not meet the criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. The crux of the dispute lay in the terms and conditions outlined in the proposed agreement, particularly regarding wages, working hours, and other employment conditions for the union's members.

The central legal issues the Commission had to address were whether the agreement contained all the mandatory terms prescribed by the Fair Work Act, and whether it was made in good faith and without coercion. The Commission also considered whether the agreement met the "better off overall test" as per the Act, which requires that employees should not be worse off financially under the new agreement compared to their previous conditions. The Commission needed to balance the rights of the employer to manage its business with the rights of employees to fair and just working conditions.

Upon reviewing the evidence and submissions from both parties, the Commission found that the agreement did not meet the requirements of the Act. Specifically, it was determined that the agreement failed the better off overall test, as some employees would experience a reduction in their overall remuneration. Additionally, the Commission was not satisfied that the agreement was made in good faith, given the process by which it was negotiated and the impact it would have on employees' conditions. Consequently, the application for approval of the enterprise agreement was dismissed.

The Commission's decision highlighted the importance of ensuring that enterprise agreements not only comply with statutory requirements but also genuinely improve or at least maintain the financial and working conditions of employees. The final orders of the Commission were that the application for approval of the Mono Pumps (Australia) Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2013 be dismissed, and the agreement was not to be certified as meeting the requirements of the Fair Work Act.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established