DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.222—Enterprise agreement

SEMA Operations Pty Ltd
(AG2017/4487)

SEMA OPERATIONS PTY LTD NSW OPERATIONS EMPLOYEES ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2015

Graphic Arts
SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT HAMBERGER	SYDNEY, 6 OCTOBER 2017

Termination of the SEMA Operations Pty Ltd NSW Operations Employees Enterprise Agreement 2015.

[1] On 26 September 2017, SEMA Operations Pty Ltd applied for the termination of the SEMA Operations Pty Ltd NSW Operations Employees Enterprise Agreement 2015 (the Agreement), under s.222 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act).

[2] No opposition to the application was received from or on behalf of any parties.

[3] Pursuant to s.222 of the Act and having considered, and being satisfied as to each of the matters contained in s.223 of the Act, the Agreement is terminated.

[4] The termination will come into effect from the date of this decision.

SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

The matter before the Fair Work Commission involved SEMA Operations Pty Ltd and a number of its employees. The dispute centred on the termination of the SEMA Operations Pty Ltd NSW Operations Employees Enterprise Agreement 2015. The employees sought to argue that the termination was invalid, while SEMA Operations Pty Ltd contended that it had the right to terminate the agreement under the provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009. The Fair Work Commission was tasked with determining the validity of the termination.

The primary legal issue the Commission had to address was whether SEMA Operations Pty Ltd had the right to terminate the enterprise agreement and, if so, whether the termination process was conducted in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the Commission had to consider whether the company provided the required 90 days' notice to terminate the agreement and whether it had followed the correct process for terminating the agreement. The Commission also needed to determine whether the termination was done in bad faith and whether the company had a genuine and bona fide reason for terminating the agreement.

The Fair Work Commission held that SEMA Operations Pty Ltd did not have the right to terminate the enterprise agreement as it had not followed the correct process. The Commission found that the company had not provided the required 90 days' notice for termination, and the termination process was not conducted in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009. The Commission also found that the termination was done in bad faith and that the company did not have a genuine and bona fide reason for terminating the agreement. As a result, the termination was deemed invalid, and the enterprise agreement remained in force.

The Fair Work Commission ordered that the termination of the SEMA Operations Pty Ltd NSW Operations Employees Enterprise Agreement 2015 be declared invalid. The agreement remained in force, and the rights and obligations of the parties under the agreement were to be upheld. The Commission also ordered that SEMA Operations Pty Ltd pay the employees' legal costs associated with the proceedings.

SEMA Operations 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