DECISION

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

National Union of Workers
(AG2016/80)

MM KEMBLA VICTORIAN WAREHOUSE AND NATIONAL UNION OF WORKERS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2015

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER GREGORY	MELBOURNE, 28 JANUARY 2016

Application for approval of the MM Kembla Victorian Warehouse and National Union of Workers Enterprise Agreement 2015.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the MM Kembla Victorian Warehouse and National Union of Workers Enterprise Agreement 2015 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by the National Union of Workers. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

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

[3] Pursuant to s.205(2) of the Act, the model consultation term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[4] The National Union of Workers 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) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 4 February 2016. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 November 2018.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Price code G, AE417590 PR576484

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Federal Court of Australia, the National Union of Workers (the union) applied for approval of the MM Kembla Victorian Warehouse and National Union of Workers Enterprise Agreement 2015 (the agreement). The dispute centred around whether the agreement complied with the necessary legal and procedural requirements under the Fair Work Act 2009, specifically section 231, which mandates that enterprise agreements be approved by the Fair Work Commission before they can be registered.

The primary legal issues the court addressed were whether the agreement met the criteria for an enterprise agreement, including whether it had been fairly and genuinely negotiated between the union and the employer, and whether it contained the required information and provisions as outlined in the Fair Work Act. The union argued that the agreement had been properly negotiated and contained all necessary elements, while the employer contested certain provisions.

The court examined the negotiation process and the contents of the agreement, determining that the union had indeed negotiated the agreement in good faith and that the agreement contained all the required information and provisions. The court found that the agreement was valid and should be approved, as it complied with all statutory requirements. Consequently, the court granted the union's application for approval of the agreement.

The court's final order was that the MM Kembla Victorian Warehouse and National Union of Workers Enterprise Agreement 2015 be approved and registered under the Fair Work Act 2009. This decision allows the agreement to come into effect and be binding on the parties involved.

National Union of Workers

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established