On 6 June 2023, new enterprise bargaining and agreement-making provisions will commence. The amendments include:
- changes to the better off overall test (BOOT)
- a Statement of principles on genuine agreement
- changes to multi-enterprise agreements.
At the start of the new provisions, the Fair Work Commission will apply different tests when approving agreements. The tests that apply will depend on when you started bargaining and when the agreement was made.
To help you comply with the legislative tests that apply to your application the FWC has developed the ‘Understand the tests that apply to agreements’ tool. You can enter the relevant timeframes to determine which tests will apply to you. You can access the new agreement tests tool on the FWC website.
The new tool will assist with navigating the new provisions and will be updated when the forms are finalised. This will provide links to the forms that apply to your circumstances.
SUPPORT AND TOOLS
The commission will continue to provide new and updated resources in preparation for the new provisions. In the coming weeks it will release updates to the:
- Date calculator for single enterprise agreement
- Create the NERR tool to align with the amended Fair Work Regulations
- pre-approval checklist to reflect the new legislative requirements. This checklist is completed by commission staff then given to the commission member who reviews the application before deciding whether to approve the agreement [See pre-approval checklist on FWC website]
- online agreement forms so parties can continue to lodge their applications online from 6 June using the online Form F16 – Application for approval of an enterprise agreement (other than a greenfields agreement) and attach the paper-based Form F17.
Learn more here: Enterprise bargaining: what's changed?
Watch this webcast: Bargaining basics: understanding the system
