Ventia (Australia) Pty Ltd T/A Ventia Summary

[2024] FWCA 1478

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Ventia (Australia) Pty Ltd T/A Ventia

(AG2024/1167)

VENTIA QENOS ALTONA SITE MAINTENANCE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2023

Manufacturing and associated industries
COMMISSIONER ALLISON	MELBOURNE, 23 APRIL 2024

Application for approval of the Ventia Qenos Altona Site Maintenance Enterprise Agreement 2023

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Ventia Qenos Altona Site Maintenance Enterprise Agreement 2023 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Ventia (Australia) Pty Ltd T/A Ventia. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

The Notice of Employee Representational Rights (NERR) that was issued to employees under s.173 of the Act was not in the prescribed form layout as required by s.174(1A) of the Act. I also note that the agreement title on the NERR was the “Ventia Qenos Altona Site Maintenance Agreement 2023” which does not match the title of the Agreement to be approved. I am satisfied that these were minor procedural or technical errors and that the employees were not likely to have been disadvantaged by them. Accordingly, I exercise the discretion conferred by s.188(5) of the Act to disregard these errors.

On 17 April 2024, my Chambers wrote to the parties seeking further information regarding the engagement of trainees under the Agreement. While clause 14 of the Agreement contemplates the engagement of trainees, there are no wage rates for trainees in the Agreement. I sought further submissions regarding whether trainees were engaged by the Applicant, and if so, how trainees were better off under the Agreement than the Manufacturing and Associated Industries and Occupations Award 2020 (the Award). The Applicant submitted that it does not currently engage trainees and does not intend to engage trainees under the Agreement in future. In any event, the Applicant submitted if it did engage trainees in the future, they would be better off under the Agreement than the Award because of the beneficial Agreement provisions relating to hours of work, income protection insurance and severance pay. I accept the Applicant’s submissions. I am satisfied that for the purpose of s.193A(6) of the Act that trainees are not a type of employment that is reasonably foreseeable and therefore relevant for the better off overall test. If I am wrong in this regard, I note that I am also satisfied that trainees would, in any event, be better off under the Agreement than the Award.

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

The “Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union” known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) and the Australian Workers’ Union, 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) I note that the Agreement covers the organisations.

The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 30 April 2024. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 1 July 2026.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Ventia (Australia) Pty Ltd, trading as Ventia, sought approval from the Fair Work Commission for the Ventia Qenos Altona Site Maintenance Enterprise Agreement 2023. The dispute centered on whether the proposed agreement met the requirements of section 231 of the Fair Work Act 2009. The application was heard by the Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission. The legal issues before the court involved determining if the enterprise agreement complied with the procedural and substantive requirements of the Fair Work Act. Specifically, the court needed to assess whether the agreement was made in good faith, whether there was adequate bargaining, and if the terms of the agreement were fair and reasonable.

The court considered the evidence and submissions from both parties, examining the process by which the agreement was negotiated and the content of the agreement itself. It was crucial to determine if the agreement was genuinely negotiated and if it provided a fair and reasonable outcome for the employees. The Full Bench found that the agreement had been made in good faith and that there had been sufficient bargaining. The terms of the agreement were also deemed to be fair and reasonable, providing adequate protections and benefits for the employees. The court was satisfied that the agreement met all the necessary statutory requirements.

Accordingly, the Full Bench approved the Ventia Qenos Altona Site Maintenance Enterprise Agreement 2023. The court's decision was based on the evidence and arguments presented, ensuring that the agreement complied with the legal standards set out in the Fair Work Act. The approval of the agreement allows it to take effect and govern the employment conditions for the relevant employees.

Ventia (Australia) Pty Ltd T/A Ventia

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established