A well-known company has approached me and a couple of other farmers in the same area to buy our crop. We believe we will be in a stronger position if we negotiate together rather than individually since this company is quite large and will most likely operate on a take it or leave it basis with little room for negotiation if they can deal with each of us separately. Should we be notifying the ACCC or seeking an authorisation from them?
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Answer by Dilani Mudalige, Yokine 6060 WA
- You may wish to seek an authorisation from the ACCC or simply notify them of your intentions. A notification is an alternative to authorisation and is only available in some cases but does include small business bargaining. A notification may be more appropriate than an authorisation in circumstances where:
- all members of the bargaining group can be identified and are unlikely to change over time;
- there is a single supplier or customer with whom the group is looking to negotiate;
- the total annual value of the transactions each member of the group reasonably expects to have with the supplier or customer will be less than $3 million (this threshold differs for some industries); and
- the exemption from legal action under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) is needed for less than 3 years.
- Anyone who is a party to a collective bargaining arrangement can lodge a notification on behalf of their business and the other businesses that will be party to the collective bargaining arrangement. Where a notification is lodged on behalf of other members it must clearly identify all the businesses involved and show that they all consent to the notification being lodged on their behalf.