TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS
Fair Work Act 2009                                       1058358

JUSTICE ROSS, PRESIDENT

AM2020/104

s.158 - Application to vary or revoke a modern award

Application by Australian Workers' Union, The

(AM2020/104)

Horticulture Award 2020

Melbourne

1.00 PM, FRIDAY, 18 DECEMBER 2020

PN1

JUSTICE ROSS:  Good afternoon.  So I have Mr Crawford from the AWU, Mr Harrington from Ai Group, Mr Rogers from the NFF, Mr Ben Rogers from the NNF, Mr Michael Rogers from the Australian Fresh Produce Alliance, and from the New South Wales Farmers Industrial Association, Gracia Kusuma.  Have I missed anybody?

PN2

MR CRAWFORD:  Your Honour, it's Mr Crawford here.  Alastair Sage from the AWU is also on the phone.

PN3

JUSTICE ROSS:  Okay.  Anybody else?  No?  The AWU have forwarded draft directions in respect of the matter.  I assume everyone's got those.  Is there any opposition to the directions that are proposed?  Essentially it allows two months for the AWU to file its material, and then two months for any party opposing the application to file its material, and then the AWU to file evidence in reply - they get about three weeks for that, and then the matter listed for hearing.  Is there any opposition to that course?

PN4

MR ROGERS:  No, your Honour.  It's Ben Rogers from the NFF.  We have indicated our consent for those directions.

PN5

JUSTICE ROSS:  All right, thanks, Mr Rogers.  Anyone else opposed?  No?  There's only one aspect I might jus take you to, Mr Crawford.  You've got, "the matter will be listed for a four day hearing on the first available dates after 14 June."  It's likely that with the annual wage review that the hearing is likely to take place in the first half of July.  And that being the case, are you, and for that matter, any other party, content if we slip all the dates you propose - in other words, give each of those date points an extra week, or two weeks, so you would have two weeks after 26 February, anyone opposing would have two weeks after 30 May - 30 April, et cetera, so slip the program by two weeks because there's not much point in us pushing you for the time period if we are then not able to hear it until the first couple of weeks in July.  So that was the first point.  Does that cause anyone any problems?

PN6

MR CRAWFORD:  That would be fine with us, your Honour.

PN7

JUSTICE ROSS:  Okay.  I don't think it affects anyone's interest.  You are getting the same sort of time period.  We will work it out so that however long the AWU has to file, the employers will have a similar length of period to file in reply.  We'll sort out something that keeps to the structure of what you have got here.  And, look, I won't specify that it's for a four day hearing.  What I will probably do is have a further mention after 21 May.  We will give you some indicative hearing dates in the directions but the further mention will be to ascertain if there are witnesses, whether they're going to be cross-examined or not, whether there are any objections to the evidence.  We'll try and sort it out so that we can minimise the amount of hearing time that the parties are engaged in, if that's possible.  Any other questions?  No?  And, yes, there will be liberty to apply so if anything untoward arises, you can let us know.

PN8

All right, thanks very much for your attendance and I'll see you next year.

PN9

MR CRAWFORD:  Thank you, your Honour.

PN10

MR ROGERS:  Thank you, bye.

ADJOURNED INDEFINITELY                                                            [1.03 PM]