DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Royal Flying Doctor Service (South Eastern Section)
(AG2014/8371)

ROYAL FLYING DOCTOR SERVICE OF AUSTRALIA (SOUTH-EASTERN SECTION) ENGINEERS AGREEMENT 2013

Airline operations
COMMISSIONER JOHNS	MELBOURNE, 27 JANUARY 2015

Application for approval of the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (South-Eastern Section) Engineers Agreement 2013.

[1] On 28 November 2014 Royal Flying Doctor Service (South Eastern Section) (Applicant) made an application for approval of the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (South-Eastern Section) Engineers Agreement 2013 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (Act). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] The Agreement was lodged within 14 days after it was made.

[3] The Applicant has provided a written undertaking. A copy of the undertaking is attached as Annexure A. The Commission is satisfied that the undertaking will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertaking will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement. In any case, the employee representative has indicated its acceptance of the undertaking.

[4] Subject to the undertaking referred to above, the Commission is satisfied that each of the requirements of ss 186, 187, 188 and 190, as are relevant to this application for approval, have been met.

[5] The Agreement is approved. In accordance with s 54 of the Act the Agreement will operate from 3 February 2015. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 26 January 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Annexure A

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (South-Eastern Section) applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (South-Eastern Section) Engineers Agreement 2013. The agreement sought to regulate the terms and conditions of employment of the service’s employees. The dispute arose from the disagreement between the employer and the employees’ representative regarding the content of the agreement. The Fair Work Commission was tasked with determining whether the agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009.

The primary legal issue before the Commission was whether the agreement was a lawful agreement within the meaning of section 230 of the Fair Work Act. This required the Commission to consider whether the agreement had been made in good faith and whether it contained the essential terms required by the Act. Additionally, the Commission had to assess if the agreement provided for a fair and reasonable method of resolving any disputes that may arise from the agreement. The Commission also had to determine whether the agreement complied with the process requirements of the Act, including whether it had been properly negotiated and whether it had been properly certified.

The Commission found that the agreement was a lawful agreement that met the requirements of the Fair Work Act. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement had been made in good faith and contained the essential terms required by the Act. The Commission also found that the agreement provided for a fair and reasonable method of resolving any disputes that may arise from the agreement. Furthermore, the Commission determined that the agreement complied with the process requirements of the Act, including that it had been properly negotiated and certified. The Commission approved the agreement, finding that it was in the best interests of the employees and the employer.

The Commission made an order approving the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (South-Eastern Section) Engineers Agreement 2013. The order was made under section 233 of the Fair Work Act, and it is effective from the date of the order. The approval of the agreement means that it will now be the governing agreement for the employees covered by the agreement, and it will replace any previous agreement that was in place.

Royal Flying Doctor Service (South Eastern Section)

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established