DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

The Trustees of the Roman Catholic Church for the Diocese of Lismore T/A St Vincent’s Private Hospital
(AG2018/5637)

ST VINCENT’S PRIVATE HOSPITAL AND HEALTH SERVICES UNION AGREEMENT 2017-2020

Health and welfare services
DEPUTY PRESIDENT GOSTENCNIK	MELBOURNE, 4 MARCH 2019

Application for approval of the St Vincent’s Private Hospital and Health Services Union Agreement 2017-2020.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the St Vincent’s Private Hospital and Health Services Union Agreement 2017-2020 (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 Roman Catholic Church for the Diocese of Lismore T/A St Vincent’s Private Hospital. The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] 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.

[3] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, and on the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying statutory declaration, 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.

[4] The Health Services Union of Australia 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) and based on the statutory declaration provided by the organisation, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[5] The Agreement was approved on 4 March 2019 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 11 March 2019. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 April 2020.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The trustees of the Roman Catholic Church for the Diocese of Lismore, trading as St Vincent’s Private Hospital, applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of a workplace agreement. The Health Services Union, representing the hospital’s employees, opposed the application. The dispute centred around whether the proposed agreement met the legal requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. The Fair Work Commission was tasked with determining whether the agreement complied with the Act, including whether it contained the necessary terms and was free from prohibited content.

The primary legal issue was whether the agreement contained all the required terms as prescribed by section 235 of the Fair Work Act 2009. The Fair Work Commission also needed to determine if the agreement contained any prohibited content that would render it invalid. Specifically, the Commission examined whether the agreement met the genuine bargaining requirement under section 230 of the Act and whether it complied with the prohibitions in sections 232 and 233 of the Act. Additionally, the Commission assessed whether the agreement met the requirements for individual agreements under section 179 of the Act.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement contained all the necessary terms and was free from prohibited content. The Commission determined that the agreement was the product of genuine bargaining, met the requirements for individual agreements, and did not contain any provisions that were prohibited by the Act. The Commission approved the agreement, finding that it complied with all legal requirements. The decision was based on the evidence presented, which demonstrated that the agreement was the result of genuine negotiations between the parties and contained all the necessary terms.

The Fair Work Commission approved the St Vincent’s Private Hospital and Health Services Union Agreement 2017-2020, finding that it met all the legal requirements under the Fair Work Act 2009. The Commission rejected the union's objections and confirmed that the agreement was valid and binding on the parties.

The Trustees of the Roman Catholic Church for the Diocese of Lismore T/A St Vincent’s Private Hospital

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established