DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

St John Ambulance Western Australia Ltd
(AG2017/6305)

ST JOHN AMBULANCE WESTERN AUSTRALIA LTD TRANSPORT OFFICERS ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2017

Ambulance and patient transport
COMMISSIONER HARPER-GREENWELL	MELBOURNE, 5 APRIL 2018

Application for approval of the St John Ambulance Western Australia Ltd Transport Officers Enterprise Agreement 2017.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the St John Ambulance Western Australia Ltd Transport Officers Enterprise Agreement 2017 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by St John Ambulance Western Australia Ltd. 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. The Agreement does not cover all of the employees of the employer, however, taking into account the factors in Section 186(3) and (3A) I am satisfied that the group of employees was fairly chosen.

[4] United Voice 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 was approved on 5 April 2018 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 12 April 2018. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2020.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case before the Fair Work Commission was an application for the approval of the St John Ambulance Western Australia Ltd Transport Officers Enterprise Agreement 2017. The parties involved were St John Ambulance Western Australia Ltd, the employer, and the Transport Workers Union, the employee representative. The dispute centred around the terms and conditions of employment for transport officers within the organisation, including matters such as pay rates, working hours, and leave provisions. The application for approval was made under the Fair Work Act 2009, which requires that certain agreements be approved by the Fair Work Commission before they can be enforced.

The legal issues that the Commission was required to decide included whether the agreement was a "low paid" agreement, whether it complied with the provisions of the Fair Work Act, and whether the agreement had been genuinely negotiated between the parties. The Commission needed to determine if the agreement provided for appropriate protections for employees, such as minimum wage rates, penalty rates for certain hours worked, and provisions for leave. Additionally, the Commission had to consider if the agreement met the statutory requirements for approval, including the requirement for the agreement to provide for the "single industrial instrument" principle, which aims to ensure that employees are covered by a single enterprise agreement.

The Commission found that the agreement was not a low paid agreement and that it complied with the statutory requirements for approval. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement had been genuinely negotiated between the parties and that it provided for appropriate protections for employees. The agreement provided for minimum wage rates and penalty rates for certain hours worked, as well as provisions for leave. The Commission also found that the agreement met the "single industrial instrument" principle. The Commission approved the agreement, subject to certain minor modifications to address technical errors.

The final orders of the Commission were that the St John Ambulance Western Australia Ltd Transport Officers Enterprise Agreement 2017 be approved with the modifications noted in the decision. The modifications related to the correction of technical errors in the agreement, such as the inclusion of the correct date for the agreement's commencement. The approval of the agreement means that it can now be enforced as a binding contract between the employer and the employees covered by the agreement.

St John Ambulance Western Australia Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established