Competition & Trade Practices
4. Collective Bargaining
Authors: Staff Legal Eagle
Firm / Chambers:
Last updated: 11 Jul 2015
- Collective bargaining occurs where two or more competitors join together and negotiate with a supplier or consumer. Competitors are prohibited from collective bargaining when making decisions about pricing, who they do business with and the terms of doing business.
- There is an exception to this prohibition in situations where the public benefits of collective bargaining outweigh the detriment caused by loss of competition.
- An exemption from prosecution in such a situation applies if you obtain an authorisation from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).
- Alternatively a party to a collective bargaining arrangement can lodge a notification with the ACCC so that legal action is not taken against them under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth).
- A collective boycott occurs when a number of competitors agree to control the supply of goods or services to another company. This is prohibited under the competition legislation. However it is not a collective boycott if the company agrees to the terms and conditions the group is asking for.
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