13 OctDid you know: modern awards vs enterprise agreements?
Awards and agreements are often used interchangeably. Do you know the difference?
Awards
Awards tell employees the terms and conditions of their employment. Most awards cover a whole industry or occupation. Examples in early childhood education and care (ECEC) are:
- Children’s Services Award 2010, covering certificate III and diploma-qualified educators and support personnel (i.e., gardeners and cleaners).
- Educational Services (Teachers) Award 2020, covering early childhood teachers employed in early childhood education and care services.
- Clerks – Private Sector Award 2020, covering admin employees working at your service or for an EYM employer.
The employee receives the benefits in the award plus other terms the law requires (for example the National Employment Standards). Examples of the terms in an award are:
- wages
- leave
- ordinary hours of work
- overtime
- shiftworker entitlements.
Enterprise agreements (i.e., the VECTEA)
Enterprise agreements (formally known as enterprise bargaining agreements) are similar to awards, but they cover a specific employer or in some circumstances, multiple employers. They may also have some terms and conditions that are different from the award.
If an agreement applies to an employee, the modern award does not apply even if it covers them.
To make sure this is fair to employees, the Fair Work Commission assesses all enterprise agreements during an approval process. An enterprise agreement must be ‘better off overall’ than the applicable modern award/s that would have applied to these employees. The Fair Work Commission will only approve agreements that meet the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009.
Do enterprise agreements expire?
A nominal expiry date is a date from which an agreement can be terminated or replaced with another agreement. The agreement continues to be in operation after this date unless it is replaced after bargaining or upon application from the Fair Work Commission.
