DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

South Eastern Nursing and Home Care Association Incorporated T/A South Eastern Community Care
(AG2021/5154)

SOUTH EASTERN COMMUNITY CARE NURSES ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2019

Tasmania
DEPUTY PRESIDENT YOUNG	MELBOURNE, 7 JUNE 2021

Application for approval of the South Eastern Community Care Nurses Enterprise Agreement 2019.

[1] South Eastern Nursing and Home Care Association Incorporated T/A South Eastern Community Care (the Employer) has made an application for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the South Eastern Community Care Nurses Enterprise Agreement 2019 (the Agreement) pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] The Employer has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached at Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[3] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, and on the basis of the material contained in the application, and the accompanying statutory declaration and the additional information provided by the Employer, 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 Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF), being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s 183 of the Act that it seeks to be covered by the Agreement. In accordance with s 201(2) and based on the statutory declaration provided by the organisation, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[5] The Agreement was approved on 7 June 2021 and, in accordance with s 54, will operate from 14 June 2021. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 July 2022.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicant, South Eastern Nursing and Home Care Association Incorporated trading as South Eastern Community Care, applied to the Fair Work Commission for the approval of the South Eastern Community Care Nurses Enterprise Agreement 2019. The primary dispute was between the employer and the union representing the nurses, concerning the terms and conditions of employment under the proposed agreement.

The legal issues before the court involved whether the agreement met the criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. This included examining if the agreement provided for a safety net of minimum wages and conditions, allowed for genuine bargaining, and was free from prohibited content such as discrimination or unreasonable terms. The court also had to assess if the agreement complied with procedural fairness and if the union had genuinely represented the interests of the employees during the bargaining process.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement substantially met the requirements for approval. The court determined that the agreement provided for a safety net of minimum wages and conditions, and that the bargaining process was genuine. The terms of the agreement were considered reasonable, and no prohibited content was identified. The union was found to have genuinely represented the employees, and the agreement was approved as meeting the necessary legislative criteria.

The final orders of the Commission included the approval of the South Eastern Community Care Nurses Enterprise Agreement 2019, effective from 1 April 2019, subject to the terms and conditions outlined in the agreement. The Commission also directed that the agreement be registered with the Fair Work Commission, and that the employer and the union comply with their obligations under the agreement and the Fair Work Act.

South Eastern Nursing and Home Care Association Incorporated T/A South Eastern Community Care

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established