DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

VEI Services Pty Limited T/A Vision Eye Institute
(AG2017/495)

VISION EYE INSTITUTE (VEI) SERVICES PTY LTD NURSES (VICTORIAN) ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016

Health and welfare services
COMMISSIONER JOHNS	SYDNEY, 19 APRIL 2017

Application for approval of the Vision Eye Institute (VEI) Services Pty Ltd Nurses (Victorian) Enterprise Agreement 2016.

[1] On 20 February 2017, VEI Services Pty Limited T/A Vision Eye Institute (Applicant) made an application for approval of the Vision Eye Institute (VEI) Services Pty Ltd Nurses (Victorian) Enterprise Agreement 2016 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s 185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (Act). The Agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] The Agreement was lodged within 14 days after it was made.

[3] The Applicant has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached as Annexure A. The Commission is 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. In any case, the Australian Nursing Midwifery Federation has signed the undertakings to indicate its support.

[4] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, the Commission is satisfied that each of the requirements of ss 186, 187, 188 and 190, as are relevant to this application for approval, have been met.

[5] Pursuant to s.205(2) of the Act, the model consultation term prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 is taken to be a term of the Agreement.

[6] The Australia Nursing Midwifery Federation, 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), the Commission notes that the Agreement covers this organisation.

[7] The Agreement is approved. In accordance with s 54 of the Act the Agreement will operate from 26 April 2017. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 May 2019.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

ANNEXURE A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The matter before the Fair Work Commission involved an application for the approval of the Vision Eye Institute (VEI) Services Pty Ltd Nurses (Victorian) Enterprise Agreement 2016. The application was brought by VEI Services Pty Ltd, trading as Vision Eye Institute, seeking to have the agreement approved under the Fair Work Act 2009. The dispute centred around whether the agreement met the legal requirements for approval and if it adequately protected the interests of the employees involved.

The primary legal issues before the court were whether the agreement contained all the mandated terms and conditions as per the Fair Work Act 2009 and whether the agreement had been made in accordance with the procedural requirements set out in the Act. Specifically, the court had to determine if there was genuine bargaining between the employer and the employees, if the agreement was made without any coercion, and if it provided fair and reasonable terms for the employees.

In its decision, the Fair Work Commission found that the Vision Eye Institute (VEI) Services Pty Ltd Nurses (Victorian) Enterprise Agreement 2016 complied with the statutory requirements. The Commission held that the agreement had been made through genuine bargaining and without any undue influence or coercion. The terms and conditions within the agreement were deemed fair and reasonable, and it was approved as it met all the criteria under the Fair Work Act 2009. The Commission also noted that the agreement provided appropriate protections and benefits for the employees, thereby satisfying the legal standards for approval.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Vision Eye Institute (VEI) Services Pty Ltd Nurses (Victorian) Enterprise Agreement 2016. The approval was based on the finding that the agreement met all the legal requirements and adequately safeguarded the interests of the employees. This decision ensured that the terms and conditions within the agreement were fair and reasonable, and that the agreement had been made through genuine bargaining processes.

VEI Services Pty Limited T/A Vision Eye Institute

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established