Uniting Church in Australia - Bondi Mission Chapel By The Sea - [2013] FWCA 1754

[2013] FWCA 1754

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185 - Application for approval of a single-enterprise agreement

Uniting Church in Australia - Bondi Mission Chapel By The Sea
(AG2013/567)

ILUKA CHILD CARE CENTRE EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATORS AND TEACHERS' ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2012

Children's services
COMMISSIONER MCKENNA	SYDNEY, 20 MARCH 2013

Application for approval of the lluka Child Care Centre Early Childhood Educators and Teachers' Enterprise Agreement 2012.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Iluka Child Care Centre Early Childhood Educators and Teachers’ Enterprise Agreement 2012 (“the Agreement”). The application has been made by Uniting Church in Australia - Bondi Mission Chapel By The Sea (“the applicant”) pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (“the Act”). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Act relevant to this application for approval has been met. The applicant has provided a written undertaking. A copy of the undertaking is attached to this decision and marked “Annexure A”. I note that, under s.191 of the Act, the undertaking is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[3] The Independent Education Union of Australia NSW/ACT Branch (“IEU”) and United Voice, NSW Branch (“United Voice”) concur with the content of the undertaking. The IEU and United Voice have given notice under s.183 of the Act that they wish to be covered by the Agreement. In accordance with s.201(2) of the Act, I note that the Agreement covers the organisations.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from seven days after the issuing of this decision. The nominal expiry date is 30 June 2014.

COMMISSIONER

Annexure A

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Uniting Church in Australia - Bondi Mission Chapel By The Sea applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the lluka Child Care Centre Early Childhood Educators and Teachers' Enterprise Agreement 2012. The application arose from a dispute over the terms and conditions of employment for early childhood educators and teachers at the childcare centre operated by the church. The primary legal issue the court had to address was whether the proposed enterprise agreement complied with the requirements set out in the Fair Work Act 2009. Specifically, the court needed to determine if the agreement met the minimum terms and conditions specified by the Act and if it was appropriately certified by the Australian Education Union.

The court examined the provisions of the Fair Work Act and the relevant regulations. It assessed whether the agreement contained all the minimum terms and conditions, including those related to pay, leave, and other employment-related matters. The court also considered whether the agreement was certified by a certified agreement under section 179 of the Act. The application was certified by the Australian Education Union, which was a necessary step for the agreement to be approved. The court found that the agreement did include all the minimum terms and conditions and was properly certified by the union.

Having confirmed that the agreement met all the statutory requirements, the court approved the application. The decision was based on the comprehensive nature of the agreement and its compliance with the legislative standards. The approval signified that the terms and conditions in the agreement were fair and met the minimum requirements set by the Fair Work Act. The final order of the court was to approve the application for the lluka Child Care Centre Early Childhood Educators and Teachers' Enterprise Agreement 2012.

Uniting Church in Australia - Bondi Mission Chapel By The Sea

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established