Plantic Technologies Limited

[2020] FWCA 301

[2020] FWCA 301

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Plantic Technologies Limited
(AG2019/5007)

PLANTIC (ALTONA UNIT 2) AWU-ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2019-2022

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT MANSINI	MELBOURNE, 20 JANUARY 2020

Application for approval of the Plantic (Altona Unit 2) AWU-Enterprise Agreement 2019-2022.

[1] Plantic Technologies Limited has applied for approval of a single enterprise agreement known as the Plantic (Altona Unit 2) AWU-Enterprise Agreement 2019-2022 (the Agreement), pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (the Act).

[2] Since the application was made, the Commission raised concerns about whether the pre-approval requirements were met, the Agreement contravenes s.55 of the Act and contains the mandatory terms. Further information was provided in relation to these concerns.

[3] The Notice of Employee Representational Rights (Notice) issued at the commencement of bargaining was not strictly compliant with the requirements of s.174 because it was in a form that had been superseded at the statutory notification time and included additional content (a date). The Notice was otherwise compliant in all respects. Having regard to the content of the Notice that was issued, in all of the circumstances and having regard to the decision in Huntsman Chemical Company Australia Pty Limited t/a RMAX Rigid Cellular Plastics and Others 1 I am satisfied that:

a) these constitute minor procedural or technical errors for the purposes of s.188(2)(a); and

b) the employees to be covered by the Agreement were not likely to have been disadvantaged by the errors.

[4] Accordingly, I am satisfied that the Agreement has been genuinely agreed within the meaning of s.188(2) of the Act.

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

[6] On the basis of the material contained in the application and further information provided on request of the Commission, 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.

[7] The Agreement was approved on 20 January 2020 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 27 January 2020. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2022.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

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 1   [2019] FWCFB 318.