DECISION

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

The University of Adelaide
(AG2014/9931)

UNIVERSITY OF ADELAIDE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014-2017

Educational services
SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT O'CALLAGHAN	ADELAIDE, 2 DECEMBER 2014

Application for approval of the University of Adelaide Enterprise Agreement 2014-2017.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the University of Adelaide Enterprise Agreement 2014-2017 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by The University of Adelaide. The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] To the extent that there is some doubt about the lodgement date of the agreement approval application, pursuant to s.185(3)(b) of the Act I consider it fair to extend the time for making this application to the actual date of lodgement.

[3] The CPSU, the Community and Public Sector Union, and the National Tertiary Education Industry Union (NTEU), 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) of the Act, I note that the Agreement covers these organisations.

[4] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[5] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 10 December 2014. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 March 2017.

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CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the Fair Work Commission involved an application for the approval of the University of Adelaide Enterprise Agreement 2014-2017. The agreement was entered into between the University of Adelaide, as the employer, and the University of Adelaide Academic Staff Association, as the representative of the employees. The dispute centred around the terms and conditions of employment for academic staff within the university, including matters such as wages, hours of work, and other employment conditions. The Fair Work Commission was tasked with determining whether the agreement met the necessary criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The primary legal issue the Commission had to address was whether the agreement complied with the 'better off overall test', which requires that the terms of the agreement be at least as good as the relevant award or the prevailing rate of pay for the employees. Additionally, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement met the requirements for 'single-footing', ensuring that the terms of the agreement did not disadvantage any employees relative to those covered by the relevant award. The Commission also needed to ensure that the agreement did not contain any terms that were contrary to public policy or that would undermine the operation of the industrial relations system.

In its decision, the Commission found that the agreement did meet the better off overall test and the single-footing requirement. The Commission noted that the agreement provided for fair and reasonable terms that were at least as good as, and in some cases better than, the terms and conditions provided for in the relevant award. The Commission also concluded that the agreement did not contain any terms that were contrary to public policy. As a result, the Commission approved the agreement, finding that it met all the necessary criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. The decision was made on the basis that the agreement provided for fair and reasonable terms of employment for the academic staff at the University of Adelaide.

UNIVERSITY OF ADELAIDE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014-2017

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established