DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.210—Enterprise agreement

Spotless Facilities Services Pty Ltd T/A Spotless
(AG2017/6174)

SPOTLESS FACILITY SERVICES PTY LTD (MAINTENANCE) VICTORIAN ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER LEE	MELBOURNE, 18 JANUARY 2018

Application for variation of the Spotless Facility Services Pty Ltd (Maintenance) Victorian Enterprise Agreement 2016.

[1] An application has been made for approval of a variation to the Spotless Facility Services Pty Ltd (Maintenance) Victorian Enterprise Agreement 2016 (the Agreement). The application was made by Spotless Facilities Services Pty Ltd T/A Spotless pursuant to section 210 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act).

[2] The application seeks to vary various clauses of the Agreement. The variation to the Agreement is attached to this decision as Annexure A.

[3] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.210 and 211 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval of a variation have been met.

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

[5] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, and on the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying statutory declaration, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.211 and 212 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[6] The Applicant provided written undertakings to meet such requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 as were relevant to the application for approval of an enterprise agreement and the Agreement was approved on 24 May 2017. Those undertakings form part of the Agreement as varied.

[7] Pursuant to s.205(2) of the Act, the model consultation term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 was taken to be a term of the Agreement. The model term forms part of the Agreement as varied.

[8] The variation is approved and the consolidated version of the Agreement, as varied, is attached to this decision.

[9] In accordance with s.216 of the Act, the variation operates from 18 January 2018.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

Spotless Facilities Services Pty Ltd, trading as Spotless, brought an application to the Fair Work Commission for a variation of the Spotless Facilities Services Pty Ltd (Maintenance) Victorian Enterprise Agreement 2016. The dispute centred on the company's desire to modify certain conditions in the existing enterprise agreement, particularly focusing on pay rates and conditions for certain employees. The Fair Work Commission was tasked with determining whether the proposed changes were justified and in line with the principles of the Fair Work Act 2009.

The primary legal issues before the Commission were whether the proposed changes constituted a "good faith" effort to facilitate a productive workplace relationship and whether they complied with the provisions of the Fair Work Act. Additionally, the Commission had to consider the impact of the proposed changes on the employees, specifically whether the changes were necessary to achieve a fair and efficient workplace. The company argued that the changes were essential to maintain competitiveness and viability, while the opposing party contended that the changes would adversely affect employee conditions without clear benefits.

The Fair Work Commission, after reviewing the submissions and evidence from both parties, found that the proposed changes did not meet the threshold for good faith negotiations and did not sufficiently balance the interests of both employers and employees. The Commission concluded that the changes would result in a detriment to the employees without a commensurate benefit to the company or the overall productivity of the workplace. Consequently, the application for variation was dismissed, and the existing enterprise agreement remained in force.

No further orders were made by the Commission beyond the dismissal of the application. The existing enterprise agreement continues to govern the employment conditions of the parties involved, preserving the status quo until such time as any further applications for variation are made and considered.

Spotless Facilities Services Pty Ltd T/A Spotless

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established