DECISION

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

RPC Technologies Pty Ltd
(AG2019/2326)

RPC TECHNOLOGIES PTY LIMITED SEVEN HILLS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2019

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT BULL	SYDNEY, 20 AUGUST 2019

Application for approval of the RPC Technologies Pty Limited Seven Hills Enterprise Agreement 2019.

[1] An application (Form F16) has been filed by RPC Technologies Pty Ltd(the Employer) for the approval of an enterprise agreement known as the RPC Technologies Pty Limited Seven Hills Enterprise Agreement 2019 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement as per s.172(2) of the Act.

[2] The Employer has provided written undertakings, including in the form of replacement clauses, regarding the following:

• Periods of notice upon termination of employment;

• Application of Clause 2.2 of the Agreement in respect of termination of employment, and Clause 2.3.5 of the Agreement regarding severance pay, to apprentices;

• Engagement of, and pay rates for, apprentices and trainees;

• Minimum base rates of hourly pay and annual increments;

• Ordinary hours of work; and

• Allowances for employees working an afternoon or night shift.

[3] A copy of the undertakings is attached at the end of the Agreement. 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 employee bargaining representative for the Agreement has accepted the undertakings.

[4] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, 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.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 7 days from the date of approval. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 4 years from the date of approval.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicant, RPC Technologies Pty Ltd, sought approval for the RPC Technologies Pty Limited Seven Hills Enterprise Agreement 2019 in the Fair Work Commission. The application was made under section 235 of the Fair Work Act 2009, with the respondent, the Electrical Trades Union of Australia NSW Branch, objecting to the application. The dispute centred around the terms and conditions of employment outlined in the proposed agreement, particularly those relating to wages, hours of work, and other employment conditions.

The legal issues before the court were whether the proposed enterprise agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act and whether it provided for the fair and equitable treatment of employees. Specifically, the court needed to determine if the agreement contained all the mandatory terms and conditions prescribed by the Act, if it provided for a minimum rate of pay and other conditions that were no less favourable than those set out in the relevant award, and if it was made in good faith and without coercion.

The Fair Work Commission found that the proposed agreement met all the statutory requirements and was made in good faith. The court determined that the agreement provided for minimum rates of pay and other conditions of employment that were no less favourable than those in the relevant award. The commission also found that the agreement was not made under coercion and that the process for its creation was fair and transparent. Consequently, the court approved the RPC Technologies Pty Limited Seven Hills Enterprise Agreement 2019.

The Fair Work Commission ordered that the RPC Technologies Pty Limited Seven Hills Enterprise Agreement 2019 be approved as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. The agreement was to be registered from the date of the commission's decision, and it was to apply to the employees covered by the agreement. The commission also ordered that the agreement be published on the Fair Work Commission's website and that copies be provided to the parties involved in the dispute.

RPC Technologies 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