Yarra Valley Snack Foods Pty Ltd
[2022] FWCA 1670
•20 MAY 2022
| [2022] FWCA 1670 |
| FAIR WORK COMMISSION |
| DECISION |
Fair Work Act 2009
s.222—Enterprise agreement
Yarra Valley Snack Foods Pty Ltd
(AG2022/1434)
Yarra Valley Snack Foods Pty Ltd and Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union Enterprise Agreement 2019
| Food, beverages and tobacco manufacturing industry | |
| DEPUTY PRESIDENT COLMAN | MELBOURNE, 20 MAY 2022 |
Application for termination of the Yarra Valley Snack Foods Pty Ltd and Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union Enterprise Agreement 2019
This decision concerns an application made by Yarra Valley Snack Foods Pty Ltd (YVSF) to terminate the Yarra Valley Snack Foods Pty Ltd and Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union Enterprise Agreement 2019 (Agreement). The application was made under s 222 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act), following a vote of employees that unanimously approved the termination.
The Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) is covered by the Agreement. It has advised the Commission that it supports the application.
The relevant provisions of the Act are as follows:
“222 Application for the FWC’s approval of a termination of an enterprise agreement
Application for approval
(1) If a termination of an enterprise agreement has been agreed to, a person covered by the agreement must apply to the FWC for approval of the termination.
Material to accompany the application
(2) The application must be accompanied by any declarations that are required by the procedural rules to accompany the application.
When the application must be made
(3) The application must be made:
(a) within 14 days after the termination is agreed to; or
(b) if in all the circumstances the FWC considers it fair to extend that period—within such further period as the FWC allows.
223 When the FWC must approve a termination of an enterprise agreement
If an application for the approval of a termination of an enterprise agreement is made under section 222, the FWC must approve the termination if:
(a) the FWC is satisfied that each employer covered by the agreement complied with subsection 220(2) (which deals with giving employees a reasonable opportunity to decide etc.) in relation to the agreement; and
(b) the FWC is satisfied that the termination was agreed to in accordance with whichever of subsection 221(1) or (2) applies (those subsections deal with agreement to the termination of different kinds of enterprise agreements by employee vote); and
(c) the FWC is satisfied that there are no other reasonable grounds for believing that the employees have not agreed to the termination; and
(d) the FWC considers that it is appropriate to approve the termination taking into account the views of the employee organisation or employee organisations (if any) covered by the agreement.”
Based on the material provided to the Commission by YVSF, including the declaration of Rachaele Scarlett, I am satisfied that each of the requirements in s 223 of the Act has been met. I am satisfied that YVSF complied with s 220(2) by giving employees a reasonable opportunity to decide whether they wanted to approve the termination, and that the termination was agreed to in accordance with s 221(1), as all 23 employees who cast a valid vote approved the termination. I am also satisfied that there are no other reasonable grounds for believing that the employees have not agreed to the termination. Taking into account all of the circumstances, including the views of the AMWU, I consider that it is appropriate to terminate the Agreement, and I do so.
The day specified for the commencement of operation of the termination will be 30 May 2022 (see s 224).
DEPUTY PRESIDENT
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