This article provides guidelines on the Horticulture Award package. For more information on this award, please refer to the Horticulture Award .
What is the Horticulture Award ?
The Horticulture Award is an industrial award in Australia that outlines the terms and conditions of employment for workers in the horticulture industry, including wages, allowances, working hours, leave entitlements, and other employment conditions.
It applies to employers and employees covered by the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) who are involved in horticultural enterprises, plant nurseries, vineyards, silviculture and afforestation, or the wine industry. Its purpose is to ensure fair treatment and compliance with the National Employment Standards (NES) for horticulture industry employees.
Who is covered by the Horticulture Award ?
Coverage
The Horticulture Award applies to employers and eligible employees in the horticulture industry based on the award’s classifications.
The horticulture industry means:
- activities connected with a horticultural enterprise such as, sowing, planting, raising, cultivating, harvesting, picking, packing, storing, grading or treating of horticultural crops
- land preparation and treatment activities connected with a horticultural enterprise for raising horticultural crops eg. clearing, fencing, trenching and draining.
The Horticulture Award covers employers whose significant business activities involve the cultivation of horticultural crops, including fruits, vegetables, grains, seeds, hops, nuts, fungi, olives, flowers, and other specialised crops (excluding broadacre field crops).
Examples of employees covered by the Horticulture Award include:
- labourers harvesting, planting, picking, thinning or pruning crops eg. fruit or vegetable pickers
- sorters and packers, including employees using machines and equipment
- drivers of lorries, harvesters, forklifts and tractors
- employees performing inventory, store control and quality assurance/control.
The Horticulture Award applies to labour hire businesses and their employees placed within the horticulture industry.
The following employers and employees are not covered by the Horticulture Award:
- wine industry
- silviculture and afforestation
- sugar farming and related sugar industry activities
- cotton growing, harvesting and extracting of oil from seed, cotton ginneries, associated depots and cotton oil mills
- plant nurseries.
Source: Horticulture Award [MA000028] clauses 2, 4 and schedule A.
How are the hours of work arranged in the Horticulture Award ?
Ordinary hours of work
Employee Type |
Maximum Ordinary Hours | Work Days |
Work Hours |
Full-time and Part-time |
152 hours over 4 weeks | Monday to Friday (or Saturday by agreement) | 6:00 am to 6:00 pm (or as varied by agreement) |
Casual |
304 hours over 8 weeks | Any day, flexible |
5:00 am to 8:30 pm (25% loading) or 8:31 pm to 4:59 am (15% loading) |
Shiftworker | 152 hours over 4 weeks | Monday to Friday |
Afternoon shift: after 6:00 pm to midnight, Night shift: after midnight to 8:00 am |
Breaks
Meal break |
|
Rest break |
|
10 hour break after ceasing work for the day |
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How are wages and allowances calculated in the Horticulture Award ?
Minimum rates
Adult employee
Classification |
Minimum weekly rate (full-time employee) |
Minimum hourly rate |
Level 1 |
859.30 $ |
22.61 $ |
Level 2 |
882.80 $ | 23.23 $ |
Level 3 | 906.90 $ |
23.87 $ |
Level 4 | 939.70 $ |
24.73 $ |
Level 5 | 995.00 $ |
26.18 $ |
Junior
Age |
Percentage of appropriate adult rate% |
Under 16 years of age |
50 % |
16 years of age |
60 % |
17 years of age |
70 % |
18 years of age |
80 % |
19 years of age |
90 % |
20 years of age |
100 % |
*For more information about minimum rates, please refer to the complete version of Fair Work.
Overtime
For non-casual employees:
- Overtime on Monday to Saturday is paid at 150% of the ordinary hourly rate.
- Overtime on Sundays (except during the harvest period) is paid at 200% of the ordinary hourly rate.
- If employees are required to work on a Saturday but the majority choose to work on Sunday instead, the Sunday work will be paid at the rate prescribed for Saturday work.
- During the harvest period, the first 8 hours of overtime in a week may include 5 hours of work on a Sunday, paid at 150% of the ordinary hourly rate. Any additional Sunday work beyond the 8th overtime hour or beyond 5 hours on a Sunday is paid at 200% of the ordinary hourly rate.
- All employees required to work on a Sunday are entitled to a minimum payment for 3 hours of work.
For casual employees:
- Each hour worked in excess of 12 hours per engagement, 12 hours in a single day, or 304 ordinary hours over an eight-week period is paid at 175% of the employee’s ordinary hourly rate, including the casual loading.
Allowance
Allowance Type |
Description |
Rate |
Wage-Related Allowances |
||
All-Purpose Allowances | Included in rate of pay for penalties, loadings, and annual leave payments | |
Leading Hand Allowance | Paid to leading hands based on the number of employees they supervise | |
In charge of 2 to 6 employees | $26.71 per week | |
In charge of 7 to 10 employees | $31.13 per week | |
In charge of 11 to 20 employees | $44.37 per week | |
In charge of more than 20 employees | $55.75 per week | |
Wet Work Allowance | Paid to employees working in wet places without adequate protection | $2.32 per hour |
First Aid Allowance | Paid to employees with recognized first aid qualifications appointed for first aid duty | $11.85 per week |
Expense-Related Allowances |
||
Travelling Allowance |
|
|
Tool and Equipment Allowance |
|
|
Meal Allowance |
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How is the leave managed in the Horticulture Award ?
In the Horticulture Award , leave entitlements for employees are determined by the National Employment Standards (NES) and the classification of the employee.
Annual leave
Annual leave is provided for in the NES. Annual leave does not apply to a casual employee.
- Employers can convert annual leave to hourly entitlement for administrative ease.
- Employees should be paid the wages they would have earned if not on leave.
- EFT payment can continue during annual leave. Employees also receive 17.5% annual leave loading.
Public holidays
Public holidays are provided for in the NES.
- An employer and employee can agree to substitute another day for a public holiday.
- An employer and employee can agree to substitute another part-day for a part-day public holiday.
- Public holiday rates for non-casual employees are 200% of the ordinary hourly rate or piece rate.
- Public holiday rates for casual employees are 225% of the ordinary hourly rate for their classification, including the casual loading.
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