Orica Australia Pty Ltd

[2014] FWC 2394

[2014] FWC 2394

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

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

Orica Australia Pty Ltd
(AG2014/448)

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT LAWRENCE	SYDNEY, 10 APRIL 2014

Application for approval of the Orica Australia Pty Ltd South East Region Enterprise Agreement 2014 - refusal.

[1] Orica Australia Pty Ltd (the Applicant) lodged an application on 3 March 2014, pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) seeking approval of the Fair Work Commission (the Commission) for an Enterprise Agreement entitled Orica Australia Pty Ltd South East Region Enterprise Agreement 2014 (the Agreement).

[2] The Agreement is proposed to operate for four years from the date of approval.

[3] A number of issues have been the subject of correspondence between my chambers and the Applicant.

[4] Attached to the application was a Notice of Employee Representational Rights sent to employees on 14 November 2012.

[5] Section 174 of the Act, in particular subsection (1A), provides that the Notice must contain the content prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 (the Regulations), not contain any other content, and be in the form prescribed by the Regulations. Schedule 2.1 of the Regulations contains the Notice template. Any notice which modifies either the content or the form of the Notice template goes to invalidity. The Commission cannot ratify any such agreement.

[6] A Full Bench of the Commission in Peabody Moorvale Pty Ltd v CFMEU[2014] FWCFB 2042 has recently confirmed this principle.

[7] Accordingly, I decline to approve the Agreement.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

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