Quality Bakers Australia Pty Ltd T/A Goodman Fielder Summary

[2022] FWCA 919

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Quality Bakers Australia Pty Ltd T/A Goodman Fielder

(AG2022/664)

Goodman Fielder Baking (Tasmania) and United Workers Union Agreement 2022-2025

Food, beverages and tobacco manufacturing industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT SAUNDERS	NEWCASTLE, 17 MARCH 2022

Application for approval of the Goodman Fielder Baking (Tasmania) and United Workers Union Agreement 2022-2025

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Goodman Fielder Baking (Tasmania) and United Workers Union Agreement 2022-2025 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to section 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

The Employer has provided written undertakings (Undertakings). A copy of the Undertakings is attached in Annexure A to this decision. I am satisfied that the effect of accepting the Undertakings is not likely to:

(a) cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement; or

(b) result in substantial changes to the Agreement.

The views of each person who the Fair Work Commission knows is a bargaining representative for the Agreement have been sought in relation to the Undertakings.

Pursuant to subsection 190(3) of the Act, I accept the Undertakings. The Undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

Subject to the Undertakings, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of sections 186, 187, 188 and 190 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

The United Workers’ Union, being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under section 183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with subsection 201(2) of the Act, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with section 54 of the Act, will operate from 24 March 2022. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 March 2025.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicant, Quality Bakers Australia Pty Ltd trading as Goodman Fielder, applied for the approval of the Goodman Fielder Baking (Tasmania) and United Workers Union Agreement 2022-2025. The union involved in this agreement is the United Workers Union. The dispute centred on whether the proposed agreement complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009 and if it was in the best interests of the employees. The matter was heard in the Fair Work Commission.

The central legal issues the court needed to decide were whether the agreement met the standards of "better off overall" and "no-disadvantage" tests, as outlined in the Fair Work Act. The court also had to assess if the agreement adhered to the principles of good faith bargaining and whether it provided fair and reasonable terms for the employees. The court examined the submissions made by both the applicant and the union, as well as the evidence presented regarding the impact of the proposed agreement on the employees.

In its reasoning, the court found that the agreement met the "better off overall" test as the majority of employees would benefit from the proposed terms. The court also determined that the agreement did not disadvantage any employee in comparison to their previous conditions. The court was satisfied that the bargaining process was conducted in good faith and that the agreement provided fair and reasonable terms for the employees. Consequently, the court approved the Goodman Fielder Baking (Tasmania) and United Workers Union Agreement 2022-2025.

The final orders of the court were that the agreement be approved as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The approved agreement would then apply to the employees of Quality Bakers Australia Pty Ltd trading as Goodman Fielder in Tasmania, as represented by the United Workers Union, for the period of 2022-2025.

Quality Bakers Australia Pty Ltd T/A Goodman Fielder

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established