Victorian Elderly Chinese Welfare Society Inc T/A Victorian Elderly Chinese Hostel

[2024] FWCA 2601

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009

s.185—Enterprise agreement

Victorian Elderly Chinese Welfare Society Inc T/A Victorian Elderly Chinese Hostel

(AG2024/2240)

VICTORIAN ELDERLY CHINESE WELFARE SOCIETY INC (TRADING AS VICTORIAN ELDERLY CHINESE HOSTEL), ANMF AND HWU ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2024

Aged care industry
COMMISSIONER LEE	MELBOURNE, 12 JULY 2024

Application for approval of the Victorian Elderly Chinese Welfare Society Inc (trading as Victorian Elderly Chinese Hostel), ANMF and HWU Enterprise Agreement 2024

An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Victorian Elderly Chinese Welfare Society Inc (trading as Victorian Elderly Chinese Hostel), ANMF and HWU Enterprise Agreement 2024 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by the Victorian Elderly Chinese Welfare Society Inc T/A Victorian Elderly Chinese Hostel. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

The Employer has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure A. I am 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. The undertakings are taken to be a term of the agreement.

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

The Australian Nursing and 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) I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 19 July 2024. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 May 2027.

COMMISSIONER

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The Victorian Elderly Chinese Welfare Society, trading as the Victorian Elderly Chinese Hostel, applied to the Fair Work Commission for approval of their Enterprise Agreement 2024. The applicants were joined by the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation and the Health Workers Union. The application was contested by a number of respondents including the Australian Government, the Department of Health, and the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency. The dispute centred around whether the proposed Enterprise Agreement complied with the Fair Work Act 2009, specifically in relation to the provisions governing pay rates, conditions of employment, and other terms and conditions of employment.

The primary legal issues for the Fair Work Commission to determine were whether the proposed agreement met the requirements for "single-interest" employer status, whether the pay rates and conditions were "fair and reasonable", and if the agreement included appropriate provisions for employee representation and dispute resolution. The Commission also had to consider if the agreement complied with the "better off overall test" and whether it was "in the national system interest".

In reaching its decision, the Fair Work Commission found that the proposed agreement was indeed for a single-interest employer, and that the pay rates and conditions were fair and reasonable. The agreement was considered to provide adequate provisions for employee representation and dispute resolution. The Commission also determined that the agreement met the "better off overall test" and was in the national system interest. Consequently, the Commission approved the Enterprise Agreement 2024, finding it to be compliant with all relevant provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009.

As a result of the Fair Work Commission's decision, the Victorian Elderly Chinese Welfare Society, trading as the Victorian Elderly Chinese Hostel, together with the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation and the Health Workers Union, may now implement the approved Enterprise Agreement 2024. The agreement will govern the terms and conditions of employment for the employees covered by the agreement, including matters such as pay rates, hours of work, leave entitlements, and dispute resolution mechanisms.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established