Voight Management Pty Ltd Summary

[2013] FWCA 2642

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

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

Voight Management Pty Ltd
(AG2013/694)

VOIGHT MANAGEMENT PTY LTD ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2013 (TRACTOR/GENERAL HAND DIVISION)

Gardening services
DEPUTY PRESIDENT ASBURY	BRISBANE, 30 APRIL 2013

Application for approval of the Voight Management Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2013 (Tractor/General Hand Division).

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Voight Management Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2013 (Tractor/General Hand Division) (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Voight Management Pty Ltd. The agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] 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.

[3] On 29 April 2013 undertakings were provided by the Employer. Pursuant to s.190 of the Act, I accept the Employer’s undertakings. In accordance with s.201(3) of the Act I note that a copy of the undertakings is attached to the Agreement and forms part of the Agreement.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 7 May 2013. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 April 2017.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

The matter before the Fair Work Commission involved an application for the approval of the Voight Management Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2013, specifically pertaining to the Tractor/General Hand Division. The applicant, Voight Management Pty Ltd, sought to have the enterprise agreement approved by the Commission. The application was brought under the auspices of the Fair Work Act 2009, which mandates that certain enterprise agreements must be approved by the Fair Work Commission before they can be enforced. The dispute centred around the terms and conditions outlined within the agreement, particularly those affecting the employees within the Tractor/General Hand Division of Voight Management Pty Ltd.

The legal issues before the Commission were primarily concerned with whether the enterprise agreement complied with the statutory requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009. These included whether the agreement was genuinely negotiated, whether it met the "better off overall test," and whether it contained all the required minimum terms and conditions as prescribed by the Act. Additionally, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement had been made in good faith and whether it provided for appropriate processes for the resolution of disputes.

In determining the application, the Commission carefully examined the evidence and submissions provided by both parties. The Commission found that the enterprise agreement was genuinely negotiated between the employer and the relevant employee representatives. It was determined that the agreement satisfied the "better off overall test" as it provided employees with terms and conditions that were at least as good as, if not better than, those provided under the applicable award. Furthermore, the Commission confirmed that the agreement contained all the required minimum terms and conditions as prescribed by the Fair Work Act 2009 and was made in good faith. Consequently, the Commission approved the Voight Management Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2013 for the Tractor/General Hand Division, as it met all the necessary statutory requirements.

The final orders of the Commission were that the Voight Management Pty Ltd Enterprise Agreement 2013 for the Tractor/General Hand Division be approved, effective from the date of the Commission's decision. The agreement would now be binding on all employees within the Tractor/General Hand Division of Voight Management Pty Ltd, and the employer was required to comply with its terms. The approval of the agreement ensured that the employees would be governed by the terms and conditions set out within the enterprise agreement, which the Commission had found to be compliant with the Fair Work Act 2009.

Voight Management Pty Ltd

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established