INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS
Enterprise Agreements in 2021 – does your company need one? Adrian Ziccone Senior Employment & Industrial Relations Advisor
specify minimum wages, allowances, penalty rates and leave entitlements, among other things.
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Generally, an enterprise agreement will be made between the employees and the employer, provided that a majority of employees covered by the agreement agree by voting for it. In some enterprise agreements, the relevant union may also be a party to the agreement.
he MBV Employment and Industrial Relations team consistently receives inquires on enterprise agreements. We assist members with a broad range of enterprise agreement questions, including whether a company must have one, the benefits and disadvantages of implementing one, and the process involved in making one. We explore these questions and more below.
What are enterprise agreements? An enterprise agreement (commonly referred to as ‘EA’ or ‘EBA’) is an industrial instrument made at the enterprise level that provides for the minimum terms and conditions of employment for a period of up to four years from the date of approval. An enterprise agreement is likely to have clauses that
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agreement with its employees. Similarly, the FW Act prevents a person from taking action, or threatening action, against a person with the intent to coerce the person to engage or not engage a particular contractor for any reason. This may be because the contractor has, or does not have, an enterprise agreement.
No. There is no requirement to have an enterprise agreement.
While there may be industrial and organisational reasons why you may want to have an enterprise agreement, there are no legal requirements for you to have one. It is perfectly lawful for a business to engage employees in accordance with the applicable modern award.
We understand that some companies may face pressure to have an enterprise agreement. These practices are illegal.
Why would you want to implement an enterprise agreement?
The Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (‘FW Act’) prevents a person (including an industrial association or business) from discriminating against an employer because that employer has, or does not have, an enterprise
Whether a company decides to have an enterprise agreement may depend on several factors. These include the company’s size, strategy, objectives and composition of the workforce. To assist in decision
Does my business need to have an enterprise agreement?
Volume 76 Issue 02
