Saputo Dairy Australia Pty Ltd Summary

[2023] FWCA 3053

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Saputo Dairy Australia Pty Ltd

(AG2023/3065)

SAPUTO DAIRY AUSTRALIA PTY LTD (ALLANSFORD) MAINTENANCE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2022

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN	MELBOURNE, 20 SEPTEMBER 2023

Application for approval of the Saputo Dairy Australia Pty Ltd (Allansford) Maintenance Enterprise Agreement 2022

Saputo Dairy Australia Pty Ltd has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Saputo Dairy Australia Pty Ltd (Allansford) Maintenance Enterprise Agreement 2022 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

On the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying declaration, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss 186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval has been met.

The Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) and the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (CEPU), being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under s 183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. As required by 201(2), I note that the Agreement covers the AMWU and CEPU.

The Agreement was approved on 20 September 2023 and, in accordance with s 54, it will operate from 27 September 2023. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2026.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT
Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Saputo Dairy Australia Pty Ltd sought approval of the Allansford Maintenance Enterprise Agreement 2022. The applicant aimed to replace the previous agreement which had expired. The Fair Work Commission was the tribunal tasked with assessing the application and determining whether the agreement should be certified as a modern award. The dispute centred on whether the proposed agreement met the legal criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The central legal issue was whether the agreement was a "single-interest" enterprise agreement, meaning it represented the interests of a single enterprise. The applicant argued that the proposed agreement was a genuine single-interest enterprise agreement, as it covered all employees working at the Allansford site. The Commission had to determine whether the employees at the Allansford site constituted a single enterprise and whether the agreement had been made in good faith and without coercion.

The Commission found that the agreement was a genuine single-interest enterprise agreement, as it covered all employees working at the Allansford site, which constituted a single enterprise. The Commission determined that the agreement had been made in good faith and without coercion. The Commission also found that the agreement contained provisions that met the legal requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. Therefore, the Commission certified the agreement as a modern award.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Allansford Maintenance Enterprise Agreement 2022, certifying it as a modern award. The agreement will now apply to all employees working at the Allansford site. The decision provides clarity on the legal criteria for approving enterprise agreements and ensures that employees at the Allansford site have a modern award that reflects their interests.

Saputo Dairy Australia Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established