DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Steggles Pty Ltd
(AG2018/5145)

STEGGLES BERESFIELD SITE (PRODUCTION & DISTRIBUTION EMPLOYEES) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2018 - 2022

Poultry processing
COMMISSIONER LEE	MELBOURNE, 5 FEBRUARY 2019

Application for approval of the Steggles Beresfield Site (Production & Distribution Employees) Enterprise Agreement 2018 - 2022.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Steggles Beresfield Site (Production & Distribution Employees) Enterprise Agreement 2018 - 2022 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Steggles Pty Ltd. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Employer 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] Pursuant to s.202(4) of the Act, the model flexibility term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[5] The Australasian Meat Industry Employees Union 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.

[6] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 12 February 2019. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 4 September 2022.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Steggles Pty Ltd, a poultry processing company, was the subject of an application for approval of the Steggles Beresfield Site (Production & Distribution Employees) Enterprise Agreement 2018 - 2022. The application was brought by the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union (AMWU), which is the representative of the employees in question. The nature of the dispute centred around the terms and conditions of the proposed enterprise agreement, which the AMWU sought to have approved by the Fair Work Commission (FWC). The legal issues the court was required to decide included whether the proposed agreement met the criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009 and whether it complied with the good faith bargaining requirements.

The court examined the provisions of the proposed agreement to determine whether it met the criteria for approval. The court considered whether the agreement contained the prescribed minimum terms and conditions, whether it provided for a fair and efficient workplace, and whether it had been reached through genuine and good faith bargaining. The court also considered whether the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and whether it provided for a fair and reasonable outcome for both parties. The court found that the proposed agreement met the criteria for approval and that it complied with the good faith bargaining requirements. The court noted that the agreement provided for a fair and reasonable outcome for both parties and that it was in the best interests of the employees.

The court approved the Steggles Beresfield Site (Production & Distribution Employees) Enterprise Agreement 2018 - 2022, which will now be binding on the parties. The agreement sets out the terms and conditions of employment for the employees at the Steggles Beresfield site and provides for a fair and efficient workplace. The court noted that the agreement had been reached through genuine and good faith bargaining and that it met the criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. The approval of the agreement ensures that the employees at the Steggles Beresfield site will have a fair and reasonable workplace and that their interests are protected.

Steggles Pty Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established