DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Stramit Corporation Pty Ltd T/A Stramit Building Products
(AG2020/1018)

STRAMIT KNOXFIELD ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2019

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER WILSON	MELBOURNE, 22 APRIL 2020

Application for approval of the Stramit Knoxfield Enterprise Agreement 2019.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Stramit Knoxfield Enterprise Agreement 2019 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Stramit Corporation Pty Ltd T/A Stramit Building Products. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

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

[3] The "Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union" known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers' 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.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 29 April 2020. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2022.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case involved Stramit Corporation Pty Ltd, trading as Stramit Building Products, and its employees, represented by the Building, Construction, Engineering, Mining and Energy Union (the Union). The primary dispute concerned the application for the approval of the Stramit Knoxfield Enterprise Agreement 2019. The application was brought before the Fair Work Commission (FWC), which is Australia's independent national workplace relations tribunal. The Union sought to have the agreement declared invalid on the grounds that it did not meet the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009.

The central legal issues revolved around whether the agreement complied with the procedural and substantive requirements of the Act. Procedurally, the Union argued that the process through which the agreement was negotiated and agreed upon was flawed, as it was not genuinely bargained. Substantively, the Union contended that the terms and conditions of the agreement were not fair and reasonable, particularly regarding the reduction in employee entitlements. The court was required to determine whether these contentions had merit and if the agreement should be approved.

The FWC found that the negotiation process was conducted in good faith and that the employees had genuinely participated in the bargaining process. The Commission held that the procedural requirements were satisfied, as the agreement was the product of genuine negotiations between the parties. Regarding the substantive fairness, the FWC examined various factors, including the changes in employee conditions and the rationale provided by the employer. The Commission concluded that, while some terms of the agreement were disadvantageous to the employees, the overall agreement was fair and reasonable, considering the economic realities faced by the employer. Therefore, the application for approval was successful.

As a result of the decision, the Fair Work Commission approved the Stramit Knoxfield Enterprise Agreement 2019. The Union's application to have the agreement declared invalid was dismissed. The agreement now binds the employees and the employer, setting out the terms and conditions of their employment.

Stramit Corporation Pty Ltd T/A Stramit Building Products

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established