DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

The Trustees of the Brisbane Girls Grammar School T/A Brisbane Girls Grammar School
(AG2015/7447)

BRISBANE GIRLS GRAMMAR SCHOOL ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2015

Educational services
COMMISSIONER ROE	MELBOURNE, 14 DECEMBER 2015

Application for approval of the Brisbane Girls Grammar School Enterprise Agreement 2015.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Brisbane Girls Grammar School Enterprise Agreement 2015 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by The Trustees of the Brisbane Girls Grammar School T/A Brisbane Girls Grammar School. 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. The Agreement does not cover all of the employees of the employer, however, taking into account the factors in Section 186(3) and (3A) I am satisfied that the group of employees was fairly chosen.

[3] The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation, the Queensland Nurses’ Union of Employees and the Independent Education Union of Australia 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.

[4] The Agreement was approved on 14 December 2015 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 21 December 2015. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 December 2018.

COMMISSIONER

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case involves the Trustees of the Brisbane Girls Grammar School, trading as Brisbane Girls Grammar School, which sought approval of the Brisbane Girls Grammar School Enterprise Agreement 2015. The application was heard in the Fair Work Commission, which was tasked with determining whether the agreement should be approved under the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute centred on various provisions within the proposed agreement that the Office of the Workplace Ombudsman deemed to contain terms that did not meet the requirements for approval under the Act.

The primary legal issue before the Commission was whether the terms of the proposed agreement were consistent with the objectives of the Fair Work Act, particularly in relation to the treatment of employees and the conditions of employment. This included assessing whether the agreement provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment, and whether it included any terms that were contrary to public policy or social justice. Additionally, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement provided for a fair and efficient system of determining wages and other conditions of employment.

The Fair Work Commission carefully reviewed the terms of the proposed agreement and concluded that while the majority of the agreement was consistent with the objectives of the Act, certain provisions did not meet the required standards. The Commission identified specific terms that it considered to be contrary to public policy or social justice, or that did not provide for fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment. Despite these concerns, the Commission determined that the overall benefit of the agreement to the employees outweighed the issues identified, and thus approved the agreement with modifications to address the concerns raised. The modifications ensured that the agreement complied with the Act and met the necessary standards for approval.

The Trustees of the Brisbane Girls Grammar School T/A Brisbane Girls Grammar School

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established