DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Wormald Australia Pty Ltd T/A Wormald
(AG2021/5617)

WORMALD NSW FIRE EQUIPMENT AND FIXED SYSTEMS TESTING ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2021-2024

Plumbing industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT BOYCE	SYDNEY, 29 JUNE 2021

Application for approval of the Wormald NSW Fire Equipment and Fixed Systems Testing Enterprise Agreement 2021-2024.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement to be known as the Wormald NSW Fire Equipment and Fixed Systems Testing Enterprise Agreement 2021-2024 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act). It has been made by Wormald Australia Pty Ltd T/A Wormald (Employer). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Employer has provided written undertakings dated 28 June 2021. Those undertakings are attached at Annexure A to this decision and become terms of the Agreement. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement (as compared to the relevant provisions of the Plumbing and Fire Sprinkler Award 2020), and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement.

[3] The following employee organisation (which was a bargaining representative for the Agreement), has given notice under s.183 of the Act that they want to be covered by the Agreement:

Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (CEPU).

[4] In accordance with s.201(2) of the Act, I note that the Agreement covers this organisation.

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

[6] I am satisfied the more beneficial entitlements of the NES will prevail where there is an inconsistency between the Agreement and the NES.

[7] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 6 July 2021. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 29 June 2024.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The parties involved in the case were Wormald Australia Pty Ltd, trading as Wormald, and the Fair Work Commission. The dispute centred on the application for approval of the Wormald NSW Fire Equipment and Fixed Systems Testing Enterprise Agreement 2021-2024. The Fair Work Commission was tasked with assessing whether the proposed agreement met the necessary requirements for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009.

The legal issues before the Commission included whether the agreement contained all the mandatory terms required by the Act, whether it complied with the good faith bargaining provisions, and if it met the better-off-overall test. The Commission also had to consider whether the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and if it provided for a fair and reasonable outcome for all parties involved.

The Commission found that the agreement contained all the necessary mandatory terms and adhered to the good faith bargaining requirements. It also concluded that the agreement satisfied the better-off-overall test, as the benefits provided to the employees outweighed any potential detriments. The Commission determined that the agreement was in the best interests of the employees and provided a fair and reasonable outcome for all parties involved. Consequently, the Commission approved the application for the agreement's approval.

The Fair Work Commission approved the application for the Wormald NSW Fire Equipment and Fixed Systems Testing Enterprise Agreement 2021-2024, finding it to be in compliance with the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009.

Wormald Australia Pty Ltd T/A Wormald

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established