DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Programmed Maintenance Services Ltd T/A Programmed Facility Management
(AG2014/10246)

PROGRAMMED FACILITY MANAGEMENT - CITY WEST WATER/AMWU AGREEMENT 2014

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER RYAN	MELBOURNE, 17 DECEMBER 2014

Application for approval of the Programmed Facility Management - City West Water/AMWU Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Programmed Facility Management - City West Water/AMWU Agreement 2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) and was made by Programmed Maintenance Services Ltd T/A Programmed Maintenance Management. The agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU), being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. As required by s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The consultation term of the enterprise agreement does not meet the requirements of s.205(1) and (1A) of the Act. Therefore in accordance with the requirement of s.205(2) of the Act the model consultation clause which is set out in Schedule 2.3 of the Fair Work Regulations is taken to be a term of the agreement. The model consultation clause is attached at Appendix A.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54(1), will operate from 24 December 2014.The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2018.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

APPENDIX A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Programmed Maintenance Services Ltd, trading as Programmed Facility Management, applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Programmed Facility Management – City West Water/AMWU Agreement 2014. The Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union was the applicant union, and the dispute was heard by Deputy President C. J. Hava. The primary focus of the application was to secure the commission's approval for the proposed enterprise agreement, which was intended to cover employees within the Programmed Facility Management division who are members of the AMWU.

The legal issues before the court involved assessing whether the proposed agreement met the necessary standards for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. This included ensuring that the agreement was made in good faith and without compulsion, provided for the proper classification and remuneration of employees, and complied with the provisions of the National Employment Standards and the applicable award or registered agreement. The court also had to consider whether the agreement included appropriate provisions for dispute resolution and if it adhered to the relevant public interest considerations.

The court found that the agreement was made in good faith and without any element of compulsion. The proposed agreement was also deemed to provide for fair classification and remuneration of employees. It was confirmed that the agreement included provisions for dispute resolution that were compliant with the Fair Work Act. Furthermore, the court satisfied itself that the agreement met the necessary public interest considerations, including provisions for employee health and safety, and did not undermine the Australian industrial relations system. Consequently, the court approved the Programmed Facility Management – City West Water/AMWU Agreement 2014.

The final orders of the court were that the Programmed Facility Management – City West Water/AMWU Agreement 2014 be approved as a registered agreement under section 234 of the Fair Work Act 2009. The agreement was to be registered by the Fair Work Commission, and it would be in effect from the date of the commission's approval. The court also ordered that the agreement be published in the Fair Work Commission's Register of Approved Agreements.

Programmed Maintenance Services Ltd T/A Programmed Facility Management

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established