Proway Livestock Equipment Pty Ltd T/A Proway Livestock Equipment

[2018] FWCA 7549

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Proway Livestock Equipment Pty Ltd T/A Proway Livestock Equipment

(AG2018/3329)

PROWAY LIVESTOCK EQUIPMENT PTY LTD ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2017

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 12 DECEMBER 2018

Application for approval of the Proway Livestock Equipment Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2017.

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Proway Livestock Equipment Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2017 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Proway Livestock Equipment Pty Ltd T/A Proway Livestock Equipment. The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

The Employer 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.

Subject to the undertakings referred to above, and on the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying statutory declaration, 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.

The Agreement was approved on 12 December 2018 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 19 December 2018. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 12 December 2022.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Proway Livestock Equipment Pty Ltd, trading as Proway Livestock Equipment, applied for approval of their 2017 Enterprise Agreement. The application was before the Fair Work Commission, which has jurisdiction to approve enterprise agreements under the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute centred on whether the agreement met the statutory requirements for approval, including whether it provided for a safety net of minimum wages and conditions and whether it was fairly negotiated.

The central legal issues were whether the agreement provided for a safety net of minimum wages and conditions as required by section 235 of the Fair Work Act, and whether it was fairly negotiated as required by section 230 of the Act. The applicant argued that the agreement was a genuine enterprise agreement that provided for a safety net of minimum wages and conditions and was fairly negotiated. The objector contended that the agreement did not meet the statutory requirements for approval because it did not provide for a safety net of minimum wages and conditions and was not fairly negotiated.

In deciding the application, the Commission considered the provisions of the agreement and the evidence presented by both parties. The Commission found that the agreement provided for a safety net of minimum wages and conditions and was fairly negotiated. The Commission noted that the agreement included provisions for minimum rates of pay and conditions of employment, as well as provisions for the negotiation of additional terms and conditions. The Commission also found that the agreement was the product of genuine and meaningful negotiations between the parties and was not imposed by one party on the other.

In light of its findings, the Commission approved the Proway Livestock Equipment Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2017. The agreement is now registered and binding on all parties covered by it. The decision provides guidance on the requirements for approving enterprise agreements under the Fair Work Act, including the need for agreements to provide for a safety net of minimum wages and conditions and to be fairly negotiated.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established