DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Peerless Holdings Pty Ltd
(AG2016/7482)

PEERLESS HOLDINGS PTY. LTD. AND THE AUSTRALASIAN MEAT INDUSTRY EMPLOYEES UNION (EVANS STREET) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016

Meat Industry
COMMISSIONER LEE	MELBOURNE, 2 FEBRUARY 2017

Application for approval of the Peerless Holdings Pty. Ltd. and the Australasian Meat Industry Employees Union (Evans Street) Enterprise Agreement 2016.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Peerless Holdings Pty. Ltd. and the Australasian Meat Industry Employees Union (Evans Street) Enterprise Agreement 2016 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Peerless Holdings Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Applicant has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement 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 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[4] 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.

[5] The Australasian Meat Industry Employees 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) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[6] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 9 February 2017. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 December 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

ANNEXURE A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Peerless Holdings Pty Ltd, the applicant, sought approval of the Peerless Holdings Pty Ltd and the Australasian Meat Industry Employees Union (Evans Street) Enterprise Agreement 2016. The respondent, the Australasian Meat Industry Employees Union (AMIEU), opposed the application on various grounds. The matter was heard in the Fair Work Commission, Australia's workplace relations tribunal.

The legal issues that the Commission had to address included whether the agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009, specifically whether it was a genuine enterprise agreement, free from prohibited content, and whether it complied with the procedural fairness requirements. The AMIEU argued that the agreement was not genuinely negotiated and contained provisions that were contrary to public policy.

The Commission found that the agreement was genuinely negotiated and did not contain any provisions that were contrary to public policy. It held that the agreement met all the statutory requirements for approval and dismissed the AMIEU's objections. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement was made in good faith and that the parties had genuinely attempted to negotiate in order to reach an agreement.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Peerless Holdings Pty Ltd and the Australasian Meat Industry Employees Union (Evans Street) Enterprise Agreement 2016. The AMIEU's application to set aside the approval was dismissed. The decision is a reminder of the importance of ensuring that enterprise agreements are genuinely negotiated and free from prohibited content.

Peerless Holdings 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