DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Robert Lange Engineering Pty Ltd
(AG2019/3011)

ROBERT LANGE ENGINEERING PTY LTD AND AMWU AGREEMENT - 2019-2021

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 11 SEPTEMBER 2019

Application for approval of the Robert Lange Engineering Pty Ltd and AMWU Agreement - 2019-2021

[1] Robert Lange Engineering Pty Ltd has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Robert Lange Engineering Pty Ltd and AMWU Agreement - 2019-2021 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] 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. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the agreement.

[3] 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.

[4] 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) and based on the statutory declaration provided by the organisation, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[5] The Agreement was approved on 11 September 2019 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 18 September 2019. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 11 September 2021.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Fair Work Commission (FWC) was presented with an application from Robert Lange Engineering Pty Ltd (RLE) and the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) to approve an enterprise agreement for the 2019-2021 period. The dispute centred around the terms and conditions of employment for the employees covered by the proposed agreement. The FWC's role was to assess whether the agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) and the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009 (Cth).

The central legal issues for the FWC to determine were whether the proposed agreement complied with the statutory provisions regarding good faith bargaining, and whether the agreement was fair and reasonable. Specifically, the FWC needed to ensure that the agreement did not adversely affect the employees' wages and conditions beyond what was necessary for the operation of the business and that it provided a fair and reasonable outcome for both parties.

The FWC found that the agreement met the legal requirements for approval. The commission noted that the parties had engaged in good faith bargaining, and the terms of the agreement were fair and reasonable. The FWC concluded that the proposed agreement did not adversely affect the employees' wages and conditions beyond what was necessary for the operation of the business. The FWC also found that the agreement provided a fair and reasonable outcome for both parties.

The FWC approved the Robert Lange Engineering Pty Ltd and AMWU Agreement - 2019-2021, and the final orders were issued accordingly.

Robert Lange Engineering Pty Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established