The City Golf Club Inc.

[2025] FWCA 2384

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

The City Golf Club Inc.

(AG2025/2006)

CITY GOLF CLUB TOOWOOMBA ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2025

Hospitality industry
COMMISSIONER SIMPSON	BRISBANE, 18 JULY 2025

Application for approval of the City Golf Club Toowoomba Enterprise Agreement 2025

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the City Golf Club Toowoomba Enterprise Agreement 2025 (the Agreement). The Application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by The City Golf Club Inc. (the Applicant). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

The Applicant has provided written undertakings. 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.

Subject to the undertakings referred to above, I am satisfied that each requirement of ss.186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

Noting clause 3.3 of the Agreement, I am satisfied that the more beneficial entitlements of the NES in the Act will prevail where there is an inconsistency between the Agreement and the NES.

Pursuant to s.205A(2) of the Act, the workplace delegates’ rights term prescribed by the Registered and Licensed Clubs Award 2020 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

The Agreement is approved and will operate in accordance with s.54 of the Act.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The City Golf Club Inc. was the subject of an application to the Fair Work Commission, where the central issue was the approval of the City Golf Club Toowoomba Enterprise Agreement 2025. The City Golf Club Inc. sought to have the agreement ratified, which had been negotiated with its employees. The application was brought before the Fair Work Commission, tasked with determining whether the agreement complied with the necessary legal standards and whether it was made in good faith.

The legal issues that the Fair Work Commission needed to resolve included whether the agreement had been genuinely negotiated between the parties, whether it met the criteria for simplification and modernisation, and if it adhered to the provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009. The Commission had to scrutinise the negotiation process to ensure that the agreement was not only procedurally sound but also substantively fair. Additionally, the Commission assessed whether the agreement contained appropriate mechanisms for dispute resolution and whether it provided for the proper protection of employee rights.

In its reasoning, the Fair Work Commission found that the agreement was the product of genuine negotiation between the parties. The Commission noted that all required steps had been taken to ensure that the agreement was made in good faith, and it complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act. The agreement was found to be reasonable in terms of its content, including provisions for pay rates, conditions of employment, and dispute resolution mechanisms. The Commission concluded that the agreement was beneficial for both the City Golf Club Inc. and its employees, providing a fair balance of rights and obligations. Consequently, the Fair Work Commission approved the City Golf Club Toowoomba Enterprise Agreement 2025.

The final orders of the Fair Work Commission included the approval of the City Golf Club Toowoomba Enterprise Agreement 2025, effective from the date of the decision. The agreement was certified as meeting all the necessary legal requirements, and it was declared to be in force. The Fair Work Commission's decision provided clarity and certainty for both the City Golf Club Inc. and its employees, ensuring that the terms of the agreement would govern their industrial relationship for the specified period.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established