The Australian Workers’ Union

[2013] FWCA 4158

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

The Australian Workers’ Union
(AG2013/1588)

LOGICAL PROPERTY SERVICES PTY LTD AND THE AUSTRALIAN WOKERS’ UNION WASTE MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT 2011

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER RYAN	MELBOURNE, 26 JUNE 2013

Application for approval of the Logical Property Services Pty Ltd and The Australian Workers’ Union Waste Management Agreement 2011.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Logical Property Services Pty Ltd and The Australian Workers' Union Waste Management Agreement 2011 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) and was made by The Australian Workers’ Union (AWU). The agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] The Australian 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. As required by s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54(1), will operate from 3 July 2013. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2014.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Australian Workers’ Union (AWU) applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Logical Property Services Pty Ltd and The Australian Workers’ Union Waste Management Agreement 2011. The application was made pursuant to section 233 of the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute arose in the context of Logical Property Services’ decision to terminate the employment of several employees, who were members of the AWU, and to replace them with contractors. The AWU argued that the proposed agreement would provide adequate protections for the employees in the transition to a contractor model.

The legal issues before the commission included whether the proposed agreement was a good faith attempt to facilitate a genuine change in the way Logical Property Services conducted its waste management operations, and whether the agreement provided adequate protections for the employees affected by the termination of their employment. The commission considered whether the agreement met the criteria set out in section 233 of the Act, which require that an agreement be fair and reasonable and provide for adequate protections for employees.

The commission found that the agreement was a genuine attempt to facilitate a change in the way Logical Property Services conducted its waste management operations. The commission also found that the agreement provided adequate protections for the employees affected by the termination of their employment, including provisions for redundancy payments, access to training and re-employment opportunities, and protections against adverse action. The commission approved the agreement, noting that it was in the best interests of the employees and the broader community.

The commission made an order approving the Logical Property Services Pty Ltd and The Australian Workers’ Union Waste Management Agreement 2011, subject to certain conditions designed to ensure that the agreement was implemented in good faith and that the employees received the protections to which they were entitled under the agreement. The order also required Logical Property Services to provide the commission with regular reports on the implementation of the agreement and the outcomes for the affected employees.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established