DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Wesfarmers Kleenheat Gas Pty Ltd T/A Kleenheat Gas
(AG2014/10760)

WESFARMERS KLEENHEAT GAS PTY LTD ENGINEERING SERVICES WORKSHOP ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2014

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT KOVACIC	CANBERRA, 14 JANUARY 2015

Application for approval of the Wesfarmers Kleenheat Gas Pty Ltd Engineering Services Workshop Enterprise Agreement 2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Wesfarmers Kleenheat Gas Pty Ltd Engineering Services Workshop Enterprise Agreement 2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Wesfarmers Kleenheat Gas Pty Ltd T/A Kleenheat Gas. The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] Subject to concerns that have been addressed by way of undertakings, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187 and 188 of the Act as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] As noted, pursuant to s.190(3), I have accepted undertakings from Wesfarmers Kleenheat Gas Pty Ltd T/A Kleenheat Gas. In accordance with s.191(1) of the Act the undertakings are taken to be a term of the Agreement. A copy of the undertakings are attached to this decision.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 21 January 2015. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 21 January 2018

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

ATTACHMENT A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Wesfarmers Kleenheat Gas Pty Ltd, trading as Kleenheat Gas, applied to the Fair Work Commission for the approval of the Wesfarmers Kleenheat Gas Pty Ltd Engineering Services Workshop Enterprise Agreement 2014. The agreement sought to regulate the terms and conditions of employment for employees in the engineering services workshop of Kleenheat Gas. The application arose under the Fair Work Act 2009, which requires certain enterprise agreements to be approved by the Fair Work Commission before they can be registered.

The legal issues before the Commission included whether the agreement was a "single-enterprise agreement" as defined in the Fair Work Act, whether the agreement contained the mandatory terms prescribed by the Act, and whether the agreement had been made in good faith and without coercion. Additionally, the Commission had to consider whether the agreement met the "better off overall test," ensuring that employees would not be worse off financially under the new agreement compared to their previous conditions.

The Fair Work Commission found that the agreement was a single-enterprise agreement as it related to a distinct group of employees within a single enterprise. The Commission also determined that the agreement contained all the mandatory terms required by the Act. Importantly, the Commission concluded that the agreement had been made in good faith and without coercion, based on the evidence presented. Finally, the Commission assessed that the agreement met the better off overall test, as the overall financial position of the employees would not be adversely affected.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Wesfarmers Kleenheat Gas Pty Ltd Engineering Services Workshop Enterprise Agreement 2014, allowing it to be registered and implemented. This decision ensures that the terms and conditions of employment for the relevant employees are governed by the new agreement, which the Commission found to be fair and reasonable under the legislation.

Wesfarmers Kleenheat Gas Pty Ltd T/A Kleenheat Gas

DECISION

ATTACHMENT A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established