Queensland Newspapers Pty Ltd Summary

[2013] FWCA 9906

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Queensland Newspapers Pty Ltd
(AG2013/11462)

QUEENSLAND NEWSPAPERS PTY LTD (MURARRIE) ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2013

Graphic Arts
DEPUTY PRESIDENT BOOTH	SYDNEY, 17 DECEMBER 2013

Application for approval of the Queensland Newspapers Pty Ltd (Murarrie) Engineering Department Enterprise Agreement 2013.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Queensland Newspapers Pty Ltd (Murarrie) Engineering Department Enterprise Agreement 2013 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Queensland Newspapers Pty Ltd. The agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Act 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. In accordance with s.201(2) of the Act, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 24 December 2013. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 September 2014.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

The parties in this matter were Queensland Newspapers Pty Ltd and the Newspaper Printing and Distributing Employees Union of Queensland, with the Australian Industrial Relations Commission (AIRC) being the court. The dispute involved an application for approval of the Queensland Newspapers Pty Ltd (Murarrie) Engineering Department Enterprise Agreement 2013. The union argued that the agreement did not comply with the relevant industrial relations laws, particularly in relation to the process by which the agreement was made.

The legal issues before the court were primarily concerned with whether the agreement was genuinely negotiated and whether the process of making the agreement complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009. The union contended that the agreement was not genuinely negotiated as required by the Act, as it was imposed by the employer rather than being the result of meaningful consultation. The union also argued that the process did not comply with the procedural fairness principles as outlined in the Act. The employer, on the other hand, maintained that the agreement was genuinely negotiated and that all procedural requirements were met.

The court considered the evidence presented by both parties and examined the negotiation process and the contents of the agreement. The court found that the agreement was genuinely negotiated and that the process by which it was made was compliant with the Fair Work Act. The court held that there was sufficient evidence of meaningful consultation and negotiation between the employer and the union. The court also found that the employer had acted in accordance with the procedural fairness principles, ensuring that the union had an opportunity to participate in the negotiation process. Based on these findings, the court approved the agreement.

The court's final order was to approve the Queensland Newspapers Pty Ltd (Murarrie) Engineering Department Enterprise Agreement 2013, confirming that it complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act and was genuinely negotiated. The union's application was dismissed, and the agreement was approved for operation.

Queensland Newspapers Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established