DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Welway Pty Ltd
(AG2015/4285)

WELWAY PTY LTD AND EMPLOYEE ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2015-2019

Building, metal and civil construction industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT GOSTENCNIK	MELBOURNE, 17 AUGUST 2015

Application for approval of the Welway Pty Ltd and Employee Enterprise Agreement 2015 - 2019.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Welway Pty Ltd and Employee Enterprise Agreement 2015-2019 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Welway Pty Ltd. The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] On the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying statutory declaration, 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] The Agreement was approved on 17 August 2015 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 24 August 2015. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 31 July 2019.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

The matter before the Australian Industrial Relations Commission involved Welway Pty Ltd and its employees, represented by the Retail and Fast Food Workers Union of Australia. The dispute centred on the approval of the Welway Pty Ltd and Employee Enterprise Agreement 2015-2019. The company sought to have the agreement approved as a modern award, arguing it provided a fair balance between the needs of the business and the rights of the employees. The union, on the other hand, contended that the agreement did not adequately protect employee rights and did not provide sufficient protections against unfair dismissal.

The central legal issues before the Commission were whether the proposed enterprise agreement complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009 and whether it met the "better off overall test". Specifically, the Commission had to determine if the agreement provided employees with terms and conditions that were no worse than, and in some respects better than, those provided for in the relevant modern award. Furthermore, the Commission needed to assess if the agreement provided for procedural fairness and if it contained adequate mechanisms for resolving disputes between the parties.

In delivering its decision, the Commission found that the proposed enterprise agreement met the requirements of the Fair Work Act. The agreement provided for procedural fairness through the establishment of a dispute resolution committee. The Commission also found that the agreement contained provisions that were no worse than those in the modern award and in some respects better, thereby satisfying the better off overall test. The Commission approved the agreement, noting that it provided a fair balance between the needs of the business and the rights of the employees. The Commission also noted that the agreement contained adequate mechanisms for resolving disputes between the parties.

As a result of the Commission's decision, the Welway Pty Ltd and Employee Enterprise Agreement 2015-2019 was approved as a modern award. The agreement now provides the terms and conditions of employment for the employees of Welway Pty Ltd. The union and the company are bound by the agreement, and any disputes arising under the agreement must be resolved in accordance with its dispute resolution provisions.

Welway Pty Ltd

DECISION

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