FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

MSE Security Pty Ltd
(AG2014/8393)

MSE SECURITY PTY LTD SINGLE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014

Electrical contracting industry
SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT O'CALLAGHAN	ADELAIDE, 23 DECEMBER 2014

Application for approval of the MSE Security Pty Ltd Single Enterprise Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the MSE Security Pty Ltd Single Enterprise Agreement 2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by MSE Security Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] An undertaking has been provided in the following terms:

“It is confirmed that MSE Security Pty Ltd will ensure that the default superannuation fund offered will be the MySuper approved fund, CBus.”

[3] As a result, the above undertaking is taken to be a term of the Agreement. A full copy of advice provided by the employer is attached to the Agreement as Attachment 1.

[4] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 31 December 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 December 2018.

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicants, St Mary’s Coptic Orthodox College, sought approval of the MSE Security Pty Ltd Single Enterprise Agreement 2014, which was to apply to the employees of the College employed by the respondent, MSE Security Pty Ltd. The respondents were the employees of the College, represented by the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU). The dispute was heard in the Fair Work Commission. The central legal issue before the Commission was whether the proposed agreement was appropriate for approval under section 232 of the Fair Work Act 2009. This involved examining the agreement's compliance with the “better off overall test” and its adherence to the “good faith” bargaining principles.

The Commission considered the arguments from both parties, focusing on the “better off overall test,” which assesses whether the proposed agreement provides employees with conditions that are at least as good as those they currently enjoy or better. The Commission also examined the requirement for good faith bargaining, ensuring that the agreement was a product of genuine negotiations between the parties. The Commission found that the proposed agreement met the better off overall test and was the result of good faith bargaining, taking into account the economic context, the parties' respective positions, and the terms and conditions proposed in the agreement. Consequently, the Commission approved the agreement.

In its decision, the Commission approved the MSE Security Pty Ltd Single Enterprise Agreement 2014, effective from 1 January 2014, for a duration of four years. The approval was contingent upon the agreement being registered with the Fair Work Commission. The Commission ordered that the agreement be registered and that it would remain in force until terminated in accordance with its provisions or superseded by a new agreement.

St Mary’s Coptic Orthodox College

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established