Resthaven Incorporated

[2014] FWCA 618

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

Resthaven Incorporated
(AG2014/57)

RESTHAVEN INCORPORATED NURSING EMPLOYEES ANMF ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2013

Aged care industry
COMMISSIONER HAMPTON	ADELAIDE, 28 JANUARY 2014

Application for approval of the Resthaven Incorporated Nursing Employees ANMF Enterprise Agreement 2013.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Resthaven Incorporated Nursing Employees ANMF Enterprise Agreement 2013 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) by Resthaven Incorporated. 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 Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation, 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 4 February 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 September 2017.

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case involved Resthaven Incorporated, which sought approval for the Resthaven Incorporated Nursing Employees ANMF Enterprise Agreement 2013. The Fair Work Commission was tasked with determining whether the proposed agreement met the necessary legal requirements for approval. The legal issues at hand centred on whether the agreement complied with the Fair Work Act 2009, particularly concerning the procedural fairness and the bargaining process. The Commission needed to assess if the agreement had been made in good faith, if the bargaining was genuine, and if the agreement contained all the mandatory terms required by the Act.

The Fair Work Commission examined the process by which the agreement was reached, considering whether the parties had genuinely bargained and whether the agreement was made in good faith. Additionally, the Commission scrutinised the content of the agreement to ensure it included all mandatory terms as stipulated by the Fair Work Act. The Commission found that the agreement had been made in good faith and that the bargaining process was genuine. The agreement was also found to contain all mandatory terms required by the Act, leading to the conclusion that the agreement was compliant.

In light of its findings, the Fair Work Commission approved the Resthaven Incorporated Nursing Employees ANMF Enterprise Agreement 2013. The Commission determined that the agreement was fair and balanced, meeting all legal requirements for approval. This decision affirmed the agreement as a legitimate and binding contract between Resthaven Incorporated and the nursing employees, effective from the date of approval.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established