The Queen Victoria Home Inc. T/A Queen Victoria Care

[2022] FWCA 2719

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

The Queen Victoria Home Inc. T/A Queen Victoria Care

(AG2022/3039)

The Queen Victoria Home Inc. General Enterprise Agreement 2021

Aged care industry
COMMISSIONER O'NEILL	MELBOURNE, 15 AUGUST 2022

Application for approval of The Queen Victoria Home Inc. General Enterprise Agreement 2021

Queen Victoria Care has applied for approval of an enterprise agreement known as The Queen Victoria Home Inc. General Enterprise Agreement 2021 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) and is a single enterprise agreement.

Employees were not notified of the voting details by the start of the access period as required by s.180(3) of the Act. However, I am satisfied that the Agreement would have been genuinely agreed to but for the minor procedural departure from the requirements of s.180(3), and that the employees covered by the Agreement were not likely to have been disadvantaged by this error. Accordingly, I exercise the discretion conferred by s.188(2) of the Act.

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. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement.

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.

The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation and the Health Services Union being bargaining representatives for the Agreement, have given notice under s.183 of the Act that they want the Agreement to cover them. In accordance with s.201(2) I note that the Agreement covers the organisations.

The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 22 August 2022. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2024.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Queen Victoria Home Inc. T/A Queen Victoria Care brought an application before the Fair Work Commission to seek approval of its General Enterprise Agreement 2021. The agreement was entered into between the applicant and its employees represented by the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation. The dispute centred around the terms and conditions of employment as outlined in the proposed agreement, including wage rates, hours of work, and other employment-related matters.

The primary legal issue before the Commission was whether the proposed General Enterprise Agreement 2021 complied with the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009. The applicant needed to demonstrate that the agreement met the requirements for good faith bargaining, the provision of a fair and reasonable set of terms and conditions, and that it adhered to the principles of procedural fairness. The Commission also had to consider whether the agreement provided for a minimum safety net of entitlements for the employees.

In delivering its decision, the Commission examined the evidence and submissions provided by both parties. The Commission found that the agreement was the product of genuine and good faith bargaining, as the parties had engaged in a comprehensive negotiation process. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement provided for a fair and reasonable set of terms and conditions, taking into account the needs and interests of both the applicant and the employees. The Commission further determined that the agreement met the minimum safety net requirements and complied with the relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009. As a result, the Commission approved the General Enterprise Agreement 2021.

The Commission's final orders were that the General Enterprise Agreement 2021 be approved as a registered agreement under section 173 of the Fair Work Act 2009. The approved agreement would then apply to the employees represented by the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation, providing them with the terms and conditions of employment as outlined in the agreement.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established