AREEA is seeking input of members to assess the possible impact of Labor and the ACTU’s plan to “abolish zombie agreements”.

Background

The term “zombie agreements” is a typically emotive slogan referring to agreements made prior to the commencement of the Fair Work Act, and which continue in operation by virtue of not having been replaced or terminated.

In some cases employers may have increased pay but not sought to terminate the previous agreement covering their enterprise(s). This includes agreements from the previous workplace relations legislation, made under the various iterations of the No Disadvantage Test in place at that time.

The policy of Labor and the ACTU is to automatically terminate such agreements, either with immediate impact or somehow phased in. How the policy would be implemented is not yet clear, and is something employers may need to seek to influence in due course.

The union and Labor policies seems to ignore s225 of the FW Act, which already allows an employee or union covered by an agreement to apply to terminate it after its nominal expiry date. It is likely this policy is motivated by cases where unions lack sufficient employee support to agitate for a new agreement

In either case, it is foreseen that such a policy will have an impact for those employers still using out of term, but continuing agreements, and are investigating what these impacts are.

Information sought to guide response

As a first step in developing arguments and policy responses, the following information from employers is required:

• Where are pre-Fair Work Act agreements used among the resources and energy industry?
• What are the profiles of employers and employees likely to be impacted by the potential abolishment of such agreements that currently remain in force?
• What would be the impact of terminating long-term preserved agreements on AREEA members’ operations and jobs?
• What typically are the key flexibilities such agreements deliver, and would be lost under the new agreement making regime?
• What practical and human resource issues do you foresee from legislation that seeks to somehow automatically terminate expired agreements?

Any information provided will be de-identified and provided as anonymous industry feedback.

AREEA members wishing to partake in this process should contact [email protected].