S Smith And Son Pty Ltd T/A S Smith And Son Pty Ltd Summary

[2023] FWCA 396

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

S Smith And Son Pty Ltd T/A S Smith And Son Pty Ltd

(AG2022/5416)

S SMITH & SON PTY LTD THIRTEENTH ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT

Wine industry
COMMISSIONER SCHNEIDER	PERTH, 8 FEBRUARY 2023

Application for approval of the S Smith & Son Pty Ltd Thirteenth Enterprise Agreement

S Smith And Son Pty Ltd T/A S Smith And Son Pty Ltd (the Applicant) has made an application for the approval of an enterprise agreement known as the S Smith & Son Pty Ltd Thirteenth Enterprise Agreement (the Agreement). The application was made under section 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (the Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

The Applicant has provided a written undertaking. A copy of the undertaking is attached to the Agreement. I am 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 compliance with section 190(4) of the Act, the bargaining representative’s views regarding the undertaking proffered were sought. They were provided with the opportunity to raise and address any objections they had to the undertakings proffered. No objection was raised.

Subject to the undertakings referred to above, and on the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying declarations, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of sections 186, 187, 188, and 190 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

Pursuant to section 202(4) of the Act, the model flexibility term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

The Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union and the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia and the United Workers’ Union (the Unions), being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under section 183 of the Act that they seek to be covered by the Agreement. In accordance with section 201(2) of the Act, and based on the declaration provided by the organisations, I note that the Unions are covered by the Agreement.

The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with section 54 of the Act, will operate from 15 February 2023. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 September 2024.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the court involved S Smith and Son Pty Ltd, who applied for the approval of their Thirteenth Enterprise Agreement. The application was made under the Fair Work Act 2009, and the proceedings took place in the Fair Work Commission. The nature of the dispute centred around the terms and conditions outlined in the proposed agreement, which the applicant sought to have approved as a registered agreement.

The primary legal issue the court had to determine was whether the proposed enterprise agreement complied with the statutory requirements and whether it met the criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act. This involved examining various aspects of the agreement, including its coverage of employees, provisions for employee entitlements, and adherence to the principles of good faith bargaining. The court also needed to assess whether the agreement provided a safety net for employees and did not undermine the existing safety net protections.

In delivering its decision, the Fair Work Commission found that the Thirteenth Enterprise Agreement proposed by S Smith and Son Pty Ltd met all the statutory requirements. The court held that the agreement was made in good faith and provided a safety net for employees. It also found that the agreement did not undermine the existing protections and was consistent with the principles of the Fair Work Act. As a result, the court approved the agreement as a registered enterprise agreement.

The final orders of the court were that the Thirteenth Enterprise Agreement, as proposed by S Smith and Son Pty Ltd, be approved and registered under the Fair Work Act 2009. This decision effectively established the terms and conditions set out in the agreement for the employees covered by the agreement.

S Smith And Son Pty Ltd T/A S Smith And Son Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established