Horticulture Award [MA000028]

This page is a summary of who the Horticulture Award covers and doesn’t cover. Find a copy of the award at Horticulture Award.

Learn how to calculate pay rates and check entitlements from Find pay rates and entitlements.

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Who the Horticulture Award covers

The Horticulture Award covers employers in the horticulture industry and their employees who fit within the classifications of the award.

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.

Horticultural crops include all fruits, vegetables, grains, seeds, hops, nuts, fungi, olives, flowers and other specialised crops (excluding broadacre field crops).

For employers to be covered by this award, an important part of their business needs to be in the raising of horticultural 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 also covers labour hire businesses and their employees who are placed with an organisation in the horticulture industry.

Check the award for full information on who is covered and the classification descriptions.

Source reference: Horticulture Award [MA000028] clauses 2, 4 and schedule A

Who the Horticulture Award doesn't cover

Employers and employees in the following industries 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.

Check the award for full information on coverage and classifications.

Source reference: Horticulture Award [MA000028] clauses 2, 4 and schedule A

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