Farmers rush to implement commission’s wage change

The changes to the Horticulture Award, starting on April 15, have been heavily debated between industry bodies and unions since they were proposed in 2014.

Growcom, with the support of the NFF and the Voice of Horticulture, has been advocating on behalf of farmers for over four years to minimise the impact these changes will have on production horticulture.

Our industry’s peak bodies worked with the Australian Workers Union and National Union of Workers to develop a framework for the decision to minimise its impact on farmers.

On August 30, 2018, the commission released a draft determination which was a conciliated review of the award. While it wasn’t our intended outcome, it could have been worse.

The commission has formally adopted this arrangement but has unfairly allowed a mere fortnight to implement its changes.

The short implementation period shows a great misunderstanding of how small businesses operate, disadvantaging farmers who are left to face the effects these changes will have on how they conduct their business and manage their workforce.

Growcom argues that while growers are legally obliged to comply, the rush to do so could lead to misunderstandings and instances of unintentional non-compliance.

On top of this, the changes aren’t straightforward. Determining whether a worker is entitled to overtime requires complex calculations and hours of work of which growers are at a loss.

Growcom is working through the implications for our grower members who employ under the award or are waiting for their enterprise agreement to be assessed.

In the meantime, we urge all growers to contact their payroll software and have adjustments made to assist in managing their casual employees’ hours.

We join the NFF in imploring the commission to guarantee it will not prosecute farmers for non-compliance, for a period of 12 months after the implementation date.