Woodrowe Tree Technicians Pty Ltd

[2013] FWCA 357

FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Woodrowe Tree Technicians Pty Ltd
(AG2012/14471)

WOODROWE TREE TECHNICIANS VEGETATION ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2012-2014

Electrical contracting industry
COMMISSIONER RYAN	MELBOURNE, 16 JANUARY 2013

Application for approval of the Woodrowe Tree Technicians Vegetation Enterprise Agreement 2012-2014.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Woodrowe Tree Technicians Vegetation Enterprise Agreement 2012-2014 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act) and was made by Woodrowe Tree Technicians Pty Ltd. The agreement is a single-enterprise agreement.

[2] I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss186, 187 and 188 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[3] An undertaking has been given in relation to several clauses 7 and 11.1(d) of the Agreement and this undertaking has become a term of the Agreement in accordance with s.191(2) of the Act and is appended at Appendix A.

[4] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54(1), will operate from 23 January 2013. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2014.

COMMISSIONER

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APPENDIX A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Woodrowe Tree Technicians Pty Ltd was involved in an application to the Fair Work Commission for approval of the Woodrowe Tree Technicians Vegetation Enterprise Agreement 2012-2014. The company sought to have the agreement certified as a low-paid industry agreement. The dispute arose because the company and the union representing the employees had not been able to reach an agreement on certain terms and conditions of employment, leading to the application being made to the Commission for resolution. The Commission was required to determine whether the agreement met the requirements for certification as a low-paid industry agreement under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The central legal issue before the Commission was whether the agreement met the statutory requirements for certification as a low-paid industry agreement. This involved an assessment of whether the agreement provided for minimum rates of pay and conditions of employment that were no less favourable than the relevant award or registered agreement. The Commission also needed to consider whether the agreement complied with the procedural requirements for such agreements, including the requirement for a majority of employees to vote in favour of the agreement in a secret ballot. Additionally, the Commission needed to assess whether the agreement contained any unfair or unreasonable provisions that would disqualify it from being certified.

In reaching its decision, the Commission noted that the agreement provided for minimum rates of pay and conditions of employment that were no less favourable than the relevant award. The Commission also found that the agreement had been voted for by a majority of employees in a secret ballot, meeting the procedural requirements for certification. The Commission further found that the agreement did not contain any unfair or unreasonable provisions. Accordingly, the Commission was satisfied that the agreement met the requirements for certification as a low-paid industry agreement. The application for approval was subsequently granted.

The Fair Work Commission approved the Woodrowe Tree Technicians Vegetation Enterprise Agreement 2012-2014 as a low-paid industry agreement, subject to the terms and conditions set out in the agreement. The agreement was certified and came into effect on the date of the Commission's decision.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established