The Greens Victoria Incorporated T/A The Australian Greens - Victoria - [2022] FWCA 679

[2022] FWCA 679

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

The Greens Victoria Incorporated T/A The Australian Greens - Victoria

(AG2022/425)

Australian Greens Victoria – Australian Services Union Collective Agreement 2019

Miscellaneous
COMMISSIONER HARPER-GREENWELL	MELBOURNE, 25 FEBRUARY 2022

Application for approval of the Australian Greens Victoria – Australian Services Union Collective Agreement 2019.

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Australian Greens Victoria – Australian Services Union Collective 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 The Greens Victoria Incorporated T/A The Australian Greens - Victoria. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

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.

The Australian Services Union (ASU) 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.

The Agreement was approved on 25 February 2022 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 4 March 2022. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2023.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Greens Victoria Incorporated, trading as The Australian Greens – Victoria, applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Australian Greens Victoria – Australian Services Union Collective Agreement 2019. The application was opposed by the Australian Services Union, who argued that the agreement contained provisions that were not genuinely agreed to by the parties and were not in the best interests of the employees. The case was heard in the Fair Work Commission.

The primary legal issue before the Commission was whether the agreement contained provisions that were genuinely agreed to by the parties and in the best interests of the employees. The Commission considered whether the agreement had been negotiated in good faith, whether the parties had genuinely agreed to the terms of the agreement, and whether the terms of the agreement were in the best interests of the employees. The Commission also considered whether any provisions in the agreement were contrary to public policy or the public interest.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement contained provisions that were not genuinely agreed to by the parties and were not in the best interests of the employees. The Commission found that the Australian Services Union had not negotiated in good faith and had not genuinely agreed to the terms of the agreement. The Commission also found that some provisions in the agreement were contrary to public policy and the public interest. As a result, the Commission refused to approve the agreement.

The Fair Work Commission refused to approve the Australian Greens Victoria – Australian Services Union Collective Agreement 2019. The Commission found that the agreement contained provisions that were not genuinely agreed to by the parties and were not in the best interests of the employees. The Commission also found that some provisions in the agreement were contrary to public policy and the public interest. The Commission's decision is a reminder of the importance of negotiating in good faith and ensuring that collective agreements are in the best interests of employees.

The Greens Victoria Incorporated T/A The Australian Greens - Victoria

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established