Telstra licensed retail store owners, who operate Telstra branded stores under license from Telstra, rather than a franchise agreement, may get collective bargaining approval with a range of suppliers after the ACCC issued a draft determination in favour of a deal.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has issued a draft determination proposing to grant authorisation to TLS Association Pty Ltd (TLSA) to collectively bargain with a range of suppliers on behalf of Telstra licensed shop owners.
TLSA represents approximately 90 percent of Telstra licensed shops around Australia. It has sought authorisation from the ACCC to engage in collective bargaining with suppliers of telecommunications products and providers of general small business services on behalf of its members.
The ACCC considers the collective bargaining arrangements should bring cost savings for individual TLSA members. It believes that as the proposed arrangements involve only a small proportion of participants in the relevant markets, there is little or no risk of anti competitive detriment.
The ACCC notes that participation in the collective negotiations is voluntary for all parties and does not impose any restrictions on the ability of TLSA members to deal directly with any supplier.
Telstra licensed retail store owners are likely to gain approval to engage in collective bargaining for a period of five years if the ACCC’s draft proposal gets final approval.
