Agreements

Enterprise agreements and other registered agreements are legal documents covering employers and employees that set out minimum employment terms and conditions.

On this page:

Who agreements apply to

There are 3 types of enterprise agreements that can apply to employers and employees collectively. These are:

  • single-enterprise agreements (covering a single business or enterprise)
  • multi-enterprise agreements (covering more than one business or enterprise)
  • greenfields agreements (covering new enterprises that don’t have any employees yet).

Other registered agreements can also apply to:

  • one business
  • a group of businesses, or
  • an individual employee (but these types of agreements can't be made anymore).

If an enterprise agreement or another registered agreement applies to employees in a workplace, no award will apply to those employees. However:

Enterprise agreements and other registered agreements apply until they are terminated or replaced.

For more information about types of agreements, visit Fair Work Commission – About enterprise agreements. The Fair Work Commission (the Commission) is the national workplace relations tribunal. They review and approve all agreements.

Watch the video below to learn more about enterprise agreements, how they are made and how the Commission assists in the process.

 

You can also download a summary of this video: Understanding enterprise agreements Understanding enterprise agreements

Find an agreement

The Commission has a database of past and current agreements on their website. You can find enterprise agreements and other registered agreements on their website at Fair Work Commission – Find an agreement.

Make an enterprise agreement

Employers, employees and their representatives are involved in the process of negotiating an enterprise agreement.

To make an enterprise agreement, there are rules about the process that employers, employees and their representatives have to follow. There are also rules about what has to be included in an enterprise agreement so that it can be approved by the Commission.

Agreements have to meet the Better Off Overall Test (BOOT). This is a test to make sure the agreement leaves employees better off than the minimum award entitlements.

Find out the rules and requirements that apply for agreement-making on the Commission’s website, including about:

  • how to make an enterprise agreement
  • who can make an enterprise agreement
  • what an enterprise agreement can include
  • terminating enterprise agreements.

Go to Fair Work Commission - Enterprise agreements

Help with agreement-making

The Commission has a role in facilitating bargaining between parties and resolving disputes.

For information about how Commission supports agreement-making, visit their website at Fair Work Commission - Implementing the new bargaining provisions.

Watch the video below to learn more about the bargaining process and how enterprise agreements are made and approved.

 

You can also download a summary of this video: Understanding bargaining Understanding bargaining

The Commission can also help employers and employees with enterprise bargaining through their Collaborative Approaches Program. It helps parties build cooperative working relationships using interest-based approaches.

The program focuses on areas where interest-based approaches can be most helpful, including:

  • bargaining
  • consultation
  • problem-solving.

Find out more and check eligibility at Collaborative Approaches Program.

Source reference: Fair Work Act 2009 s50-58, s127 and s169-257

Tools and resources

Related information

Help for small business

Tags
Pay/wages (eg. penalty rates, overtime)
Enterprise agreements