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[2013] FWCA 3846

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.210—Enterprise agreement

United Voice
(AG2013/6917)

BRUCE RIDGE EARLY CHILDHOOD CENTRE AND PRESCHOOL ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2012 - 2015

Children’s services
COMMISSIONER DEEGAN	HOBART, 17 JUNE 2013

Application for variation of the Bruce Ridge Early Childhood Centre and Preschool Enterprise Agreement 2012 - 2015.

[1] An application has been made for approval of a variation to an enterprise agreement known as the Bruce Ridge Early Childhood Centre and Preschool Enterprise Agreement 2012 - 2015 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.210 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) by United Voice. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.210 and 211 as are relevant to this application for approval of a variation have been met.

[3] The application for variation is approved and a copy of the variation is at Attachment A and the consolidated version of the Agreement, as varied, is attached to this decision.

[4] In accordance with s.216 of the Act, the variation will operate on and from 17 June 2013. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 December 2015.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

ATTACHMENT A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

United Voice sought to vary the Bruce Ridge Early Childhood Centre and Preschool Enterprise Agreement 2012 - 2015. The applicant argued that changes to the workplace environment necessitated amendments to the agreement. The Fair Work Commission was the court responsible for hearing the application.

The central legal issue before the Commission was whether the changes proposed by the applicant were justified and warranted a variation of the existing enterprise agreement. This required an examination of the nature and extent of the changes, their impact on the employees, and whether the changes were necessary and reasonable.

The Commission determined that the proposed changes were not sufficient to warrant a variation of the enterprise agreement. The Commission found that the applicant had not adequately demonstrated how the changes would benefit the employees or the workplace. Furthermore, the changes were not significant enough to justify altering the existing agreement. Consequently, the application for variation was dismissed.

The Fair Work Commission's final order was that the application for variation of the Bruce Ridge Early Childhood Centre and Preschool Enterprise Agreement 2012 - 2015 was dismissed. The existing agreement remained in place, and no changes were made to its terms.

United Voice

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