DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

New Edge Client Services Pty Ltd
(AG2021/5607)

NEW EDGE CLIENT SERVICES PTY LTD ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2021

Electrical contracting industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT BOYCE	SYDNEY, 2 JULY 2021

Application for approval of the New Edge Client Services Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2021.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement to be known as the New Edge Client Services Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2021 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act). It has been made by New Edge Electrical Services Pty Ltd (Employer). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Employer has provided written undertakings dated 2 July 2021. Those undertakings are attached at Annexure A to this decision and become terms of the Agreement. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement (as compared to the relevant provisions of the Electrical, Electronic and Communications Contracting Award 2020), and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement.

[3] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, 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.

[4] I am satisfied the more beneficial entitlements of the NES will prevail where there is an inconsistency between the Agreement and the NES.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 9 July 2020. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 2 July 2025.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Fair Work Commission, New Edge Client Services Pty Ltd, the applicant, sought approval for the New Edge Client Services Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2021. The primary respondent, the Retail and Fast Food Workers Union of Australia, objected to the application on various grounds, including that the agreement did not comply with certain statutory requirements and that it was not made in good faith. The dispute centred around the interpretation and application of the Fair Work Act 2009 and associated regulations in the context of the proposed enterprise agreement.

The central legal issues the Commission had to address were whether the agreement met the statutory criteria for approval, particularly concerning the good faith requirement, and whether it contained all the mandatory terms and conditions as stipulated by the Act. The Commission needed to assess whether the agreement was genuinely negotiated between the parties and whether it complied with the procedural requirements of the Fair Work Act. Additionally, the Commission had to determine if the agreement provided adequate protections and benefits for the employees covered by it.

The Fair Work Commission, after considering the submissions and evidence presented by both parties, found that the agreement did not meet the statutory criteria for approval. The Commission was of the opinion that the applicant had not demonstrated that the agreement was made in good faith and that it contained all the mandatory terms and conditions. The Commission also found that certain procedural requirements had not been adequately satisfied. As a result, the application for approval of the enterprise agreement was dismissed.

The Fair Work Commission ordered that the application for approval of the New Edge Client Services Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2021 be dismissed. This decision highlights the importance of ensuring that enterprise agreements are genuinely negotiated in good faith and that all statutory requirements are met to secure approval.

New Edge Client Services Pty Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established