DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Silanna Semiconductor Pty Ltd t/a Silanna
(AG2015/7631)

SILANNA PTY LTD ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2015

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER GREGORY	MELBOURNE, 8 JANUARY 2016

Application for approval of the Silanna Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2015.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Silanna Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2015 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Silanna Semiconductor Pty Ltd t/a Silanna. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Applicant has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure A. 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.

[3] 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.

[4] The Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 15 January 2016. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 September 2018.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Fair Work Commission, Silanna Semiconductor Pty Ltd, trading as Silanna, applied for the approval of the Silanna Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2015. The application was made under section 233 of the Fair Work Act 2009, seeking the Commission's endorsement of the agreement, which was negotiated between the company and the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union. The dispute centred on whether the agreement complied with the requirements of the Act and whether it met the 'better off overall test' in terms of the employees' entitlements and conditions.

The central legal issues before the Commission were whether the agreement provided for employees' terms and conditions of employment that were at least as favourable as those provided by the relevant awards or registered agreements, and whether it was in the best interests of the employees to be covered by the agreement rather than the applicable awards. Additionally, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement contained all the mandatory terms required by the Act and whether it complied with procedural requirements such as proper negotiation and provision of relevant information to employees.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement met the statutory requirements and passed the better off overall test. The Commission noted that the agreement provided for terms and conditions that were at least as good as, and in many cases better than, those provided by the relevant awards. Furthermore, the agreement contained all the mandatory terms required by the Act, and the negotiation process was deemed to have been conducted in good faith. The Commission concluded that the agreement was in the best interests of the employees, as it offered improved conditions and benefits compared to the applicable awards. Consequently, the Commission approved the Silanna Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2015.

The Fair Work Commission, in approving the agreement, made an order under section 233 of the Fair Work Act 2009 that the Silanna Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2015 be approved as a registered agreement. The approval came into effect on the date of the Commission's decision and governed the employment conditions of the employees covered by the agreement.

Silanna Semiconductor Pty Ltd t/a Silanna

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established