PEER Education Employment & Training Ltd T/A PEER Summary

[2024] FWCA 2686

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

PEER Education Employment & Training Ltd T/A PEER

(AG2024/2499)

PEER TRAINERS & ASSESSORS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2024

Educational services
COMMISSIONER PLATT	ADELAIDE, 24 JULY 2024

Application for approval of the PEER Trainers & Assessors Enterprise Agreement 2024

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the PEER Trainers & Assessors Enterprise Agreement 2024 (the Agreement) pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) by PEER Education Employment & Training Ltd T/A PEER (the Applicant). The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

The matter was allocated to my Chambers on 16 July 2024.

On 16 July 2024, I provided the parties with a table of issues to seek clarification about aspects of the Agreement and invited the Applicant to address these matters including through the provision of an undertaking.

The Applicant has submitted an undertaking in the required form dated 17 July 2024. The undertaking deals with the following topics:

· The Applicant has inserted the model consultation term to replace Clause 44 of the Agreement.
· Clause 40.5 will not apply to the extent it is inconsistent with the NES. Where there is an inconsistency, the NES will prevail.
· Despite Clause 10.1.3, the minimum engagement for a Casual Trainer Level 2/SME will be 6 hours.

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.

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.

The Communications Electrical Electronic Energy Information Postal Plumbing & Allied Services Union of Australia – SA Branch Electrical & Plumbing Division, 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.

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.

The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 7 days after the date of approval of the Agreement. The nominal expiry date is 30 June 2027.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Fair Work Commission, the applicant, PEER Education Employment & Training Ltd, trading as PEER, applied for approval of the PEER Trainers & Assessors Enterprise Agreement 2024. The application was made under section 230 of the Fair Work Act 2009. The applicant is an educational organisation operating in the vocational education and training sector, employing trainers and assessors who deliver and assess vocational training. The respondent, the Australian Education Union, represents the applicant's employees in the dispute.

The central legal issues before the Commission were whether the proposed agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act and whether it complied with the 'better off overall test'. Specifically, the Commission had to consider if the agreement provided employees with conditions at least as good as those provided under the applicable award or registered agreement and whether it was in the interests of the employees to be covered by the agreement. The Commission also had to ensure that the agreement did not have an adverse effect on employees' job security.

The Fair Work Commission found that the proposed agreement met the legal requirements of the Fair Work Act. It provided for a comprehensive set of terms and conditions that were at least as good as, and in some respects better than, those in the applicable award. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement passed the 'better off overall test' as it provided for an increase in wages and other benefits for the employees, without any detrimental impact on job security. The Commission also noted that the agreement included provisions for dispute resolution and flexibility in working arrangements, which were beneficial to both the employer and employees. Consequently, the Commission approved the agreement under section 230 of the Fair Work Act.

The final order was that the PEER Trainers & Assessors Enterprise Agreement 2024 be approved as a registered agreement, effective from the date of the Commission's decision. The approval ensures that the agreement will apply to all employees covered by it, providing them with the improved conditions and protections outlined in the agreement.

PEER Education Employment & Training Ltd T/A PEER

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established