Lion Pty Ltd trading as Little Creatures Geelong v "Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union" known as the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union (AMWU) (188V)
Citation: [2026] FWCFB 228
At a glance
- Employees affected
- 30
What happened
Lion Pty Ltd (trading as Little Creatures Geelong) and the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) were involved in a dispute regarding a proposed enterprise agreement for employees at the Little Creatures Brewery in Geelong, Victoria. The AMWU sought a majority support determination under the Fair Work Act. The Deputy President initially found the AMWU had standing to apply, believing an employee, Allan Ball, was a ‘Technical Officer’ as defined by the AMWU’s rules. The Deputy President also found a majority of employees wanted to bargain, the group was fairly chosen, and it was reasonable to make the determination. Lion appealed this decision.
What was decided
The Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission dismissed Lion’s appeal, but granted permission to appeal on the matter of the proper construction of the AMWU’s rules. The Deputy President’s original decision regarding the majority support determination was otherwise upheld. The Commission found the AMWU had standing because Allan Ball’s role fell within the definition of ‘technical officer’ in the AMWU’s rules. The bench also found that employee support for bargaining was genuine, the group was fairly chosen, and it was reasonable to make the determination, despite Lion’s arguments about misrepresentation and the scope of the agreement.
What it means for employers
Employers should carefully review union membership eligibility criteria and ensure they are accurately applied. Misrepresenting union membership or bargaining rights can undermine the validity of majority support determinations. When challenging a determination, employers need to provide clear evidence of misrepresentation or flawed reasoning.
What it means for employees
Employees should be aware of the requirements for a majority support determination and the potential impact on enterprise bargaining. Union members should ensure their eligibility for membership is accurate and understand the implications of signing petitions or expressing support for bargaining.
Want this applied to your situation?
Reading the decision is free. FairWork Mate goes further — it reads the full case library and applies precedents like this one to your specific facts, citing the cases as it reasons. General information, not a guaranteed outcome or legal advice.
Every statement above is drawn from the published decision. Read the original here:
https://www.fwc.gov.au/documents/decisionssigned/pdf/2026fwcfb228.pdfWant more cases like this?
FairWork Mate tracks Fair Work Ombudsman, Fair Work Commission and Federal Court decisions across Australia. The AI advisor answers plain-English questions grounded on the full corpus — awards cited, industry, penalty amounts and affected employee counts — with a citation to the underlying decision on every answer.
Individual case summaries on this site are free. The full FWC and Federal Court library behind every advisor answer is on Pro.
FairWork Mate AI
This is one decision. Pro reads all of them.
Free case pages cite the top 250 decisions. Pro opens the full Fair Work Commission and Federal Court library, cross-references your own situation against it, and cites the decision behind every answer — plus document upload, so it can read your letter or contract line by line. 150 questions a month, cancel anytime.
Just need today sorted? A Day Pass is 25 questions over 24 hours. No account, nothing to cancel.
Get notified on new Fair Work cases
Free email alerts when we publish new underpayment decisions, penalty orders, and workplace law updates.
Free forever. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
This summary was drafted from the published decision and reviewed before publishing. It is general information, not legal advice. For your specific situation, speak to the Fair Work Ombudsman (13 13 94) or a qualified lawyer. About these summaries & corrections