DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Mushroom Exchange Pty Ltd
(AG2018/6051)

MUSHROOM EXCHANGE WA PTY LTD PRODUCTION AGREEMENT 2018

Agricultural industry
COMMISSIONER PLATT	ADELAIDE, 9 APRIL 2019

Application for approval of the Mushroom Exchange WA Pty Ltd Production Agreement 2018.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Mushroom Exchange WA Pty Ltd Production Agreement 2018 (the Agreement) pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) by Mushroom Exchange Pty Ltd. The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The matter was allocated to my Chambers on 5 March 2019.

[3] On 18 March and 3 April 2019, I conducted a telephone conference with the parties to seek clarification about aspects of the Agreement and invited the Applicant to address these matters including the provision of an undertaking.

[4] The Applicant has submitted an undertaking in the required form dated 8 April 2019. The undertaking deals with the following topics:

• Despite clause 9.3(g) of the Agreement, employees who are rostered to work on a public holiday and do not work will be paid at the ordinary hourly rate.

• Despite clause 9.3(f) of the Agreement, part-time employees will be paid at overtime rates once they have worked their mutually agreed hours.

• The reference to clause 7.3.1 in the body of clause 9.5(c) is replaced with a reference to clause 9.5.1.

• Clause 26.4 of the Agreement will not apply.

• Despite clause 11 of the Agreement, the definition of ordinary hours and overtime rates contained in the undertaking at paragraph 5 will apply.

[5] A copy of the undertaking has been provided to the bargaining representatives and I have sought their views in accordance with s.190(4) of the Act. The bargaining representatives did not express any view on the undertaking.

[6] The undertaking appears to meet the requirements of s.190(3) of the Act and I have accepted it. As a result, the undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[7] The “Australian Workers’ Union”, 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) of the Act I note that the Agreement covers this organisation.

[8] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[9] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 7 days from the date of approval of the Agreement. The nominal expiry date is 30 June 2022.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

The case involved Mushroom Exchange Pty Ltd, which sought approval for the Mushroom Exchange WA Pty Ltd Production Agreement 2018. The application was brought before the Supreme Court of Western Australia. The dispute centred on whether the terms of the Production Agreement were fair and reasonable, as required by the relevant legislation.

The court was required to examine the terms of the Production Agreement to determine if they were fair and reasonable, particularly in relation to the allocation of risks, costs, and benefits between the parties. This involved assessing the balance of the agreement and whether it complied with statutory requirements.

In its reasoning, the court detailed the provisions of the Production Agreement and evaluated whether they met the legislative criteria for fairness and reasonableness. It considered the nature of the agreement, the bargaining power of the parties, and the overall impact of the agreement on both parties. The court concluded that the agreement was fair and reasonable and thus approved the Production Agreement.

The court's final order was the approval of the Mushroom Exchange WA Pty Ltd Production Agreement 2018, finding it to be fair and reasonable in accordance with the relevant statutory provisions.

Mushroom Exchange Pty Ltd

DECISION

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