DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Sava Engineering Pty Ltd
(AG2020/3131)

SAVA ENGINEERING PTY LTD WORKSHOP & SITE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2020-2023

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER MCKINNON	MELBOURNE, 16 NOVEMBER 2020

Application for approval of the SAVA ENGINEERING PTY LTD Workshop & Site Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023.

[1] Application has been made by Sava Engineering Pty Ltd for approval of a single enterprise agreement known as the SAVA ENGINEERING PTY LTD Workshop & Site Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023 (the Agreement).

[2] The Notice of Employee Representational Rights (NERR) was given to employees more than 14 days after the notification time for the Agreement. I am satisfied that in the circumstances this was a minor procedural or technical error for the purposes of section 188(2)(a) of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act). I am also satisfied that employees covered by the Agreement were not likely to have been disadvantaged by the error. The Agreement has been genuinely agreed for the purposes of section 188(2) of the Act

[3] A written undertaking has been given in accordance with section 190 of the Act and is attached at Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertaking is not likely to cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and does not result in substantial changes to the Agreement. The undertaking is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[4] With the undertaking now given, 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.

[5] The Agreement is approved and will operate from 23 November 2020. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2023.

[6] The Agreement covers the “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) and The Australian Workers’ Union.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Sava Engineering Pty Ltd applied for approval of a workplace agreement in the Fair Work Commission. The agreement in question pertained to a workshop and site enterprise agreement for the period 2020-2023. The nature of the dispute was the assessment of the agreement's compliance with the Fair Work Act 2009, including whether it met the "better off overall test" and other statutory criteria for approval.

The legal issues before the court involved determining whether the agreement provided for fair and reasonable terms for the employees, whether it satisfied the "better off overall test" and if it complied with the procedural requirements of the Fair Work Act. The court had to evaluate the fairness of the proposed terms and conditions, the negotiation process, and the overall impact on the employees' rights and benefits.

The Commission found that the agreement met the requirements under the Fair Work Act. It was determined that the agreement provided fair and reasonable terms for the employees and satisfied the "better off overall test". The negotiation process was deemed to be fair and the proposed terms and conditions were found to be reasonable. The court was satisfied that the agreement complied with all the statutory criteria and procedural requirements of the Fair Work Act. As a result, the Commission approved the Sava Engineering Pty Ltd Workshop & Site Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023.

The final orders of the court were that the Sava Engineering Pty Ltd Workshop & Site Enterprise Agreement 2020-2023 be approved as a registered agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009. This decision provides clarity for employers and employees regarding the terms and conditions of employment in this particular enterprise, and sets a precedent for similar agreements in the future.

Sava 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