SCHADS Award rates in Australia 2025/2026

Quick summary for time-poor managers

The four compliance pillars that drive SCHADS underpayments

Most SCHADS underpayments trace back to one (or more) of these.

"Sanity check" minimum adult hourly rates (full-time equivalent, ordinary weekday hours)

• Home care (aged care) Level 2: $32.86/hr (from 1 Oct 2025)
• Home care (disability care) Level 2 Pay point 1: $27.55/hr
• Social & community services Level 2 Pay point 1 (ERO current rate): $34.58/hr
• Crisis accommodation Level 1 Pay point 1 (ERO current rate): $38.65/hr

Headline "big lever" penalties

• Saturday ordinary hours: 150%
• Sunday ordinary hours: 200%
• Public holiday: 250%
• Casual weekend (inclusive of casual loading): Saturday 175%, Sunday 225%
• Casual public holiday (inclusive): 275%

Award coverage

Does the SCHADS award apply? (quick self-check)

SCHADS covers employers throughout Australia in the:

• crisis assistance and supported housing sector
• social and community services sector
• home care sector
• family day care scheme sector

It also lists key exclusions

SCHADS does not cover employers/employees covered by (among others):

• Aged Care Award 2010
• Health Professionals and Support Services Award 2010
• Nurses Award 2010

Labour hire / on-hire note

SCHADS can apply to labour hire/on-hire employees when they're performing work in the covered industry sectors (subject to exclusions).

What is the SCHADS Award?

Think of MA000100 as the minimum "rulebook" you can't go below when it applies. It sets:

• minimum wages (by Schedule/classification/pay point)
• casual loading and minimum shift payments
• rostering structures (including broken shifts, sleepovers, on-call)
• penalty rates, overtime and shift loadings
• allowances (uniform/laundry, meal, vehicle, on-call, broken shift allowance, etc.)

Who it covers (and who it doesn't)

Common roles & likely classifications

Below are 10 common roles in disability, community and home care businesses, mapped to a most-likely SCHADS schedule/level shortlist. This is not a definitive classification. Final classification depends on actual duties and the relevant Schedule definitions in MA000100.

2025/26 pay rates overview

For the official rates, download the Pay Guide – SCHADS Award (MA000100) from Fair Work.

The SCHADS pay structure in one sentence

You must identify the right Schedule (stream) first, then the correct level and pay point, then apply casual loading/penalties/allowances as required.

Schedule B – social and community services (SACS)

Schedule B covers employees in social and community services who are not in home care, crisis accommodation, or family day care. This includes disability support workers (non-home care), support coordinators, case managers, intake workers, and community services roles.

Schedule B minimum weekly wages (ERO rates from 1 july 2025)

The table below shows indicative weekly rates for full-time employees (38 hours). Casual employees receive the hourly rate plus 25% casual loading. Pay points within each level reflect experience progression.

These are indicative ERO rates from 1 July 2025. ERO rates change annually (typically 1 December). Verify using the SCHADS Pay Guide [MA000100] for current figures.

Schedule B classification levels explained

Classifications are based on duties, qualifications, and responsibility level. Common placements:

Classifications should be reviewed whenever duties change and at least annually.

Schedule C – crisis assistance and supported housing

Schedule C covers employees in crisis accommodation, supported housing, and refuge services. This includes crisis accommodation workers, refuge workers, and staff in homelessness services where the primary role involves crisis response or supported housing.

Schedule C minimum weekly wages (ERO rates from 1 july 2025)

Schedule C mirrors Schedule B rates for equivalent levels. ERO loadings apply. Verify using the SCHADS Pay Guide [MA000100].

Schedule C classification levels

Schedule D – family day care

Schedule D covers employees in family day care coordination and field staff roles. This does not include family day care educators who are typically self-employed. Schedule D covers coordination unit staff who support and monitor family day care educators.

Schedule D minimum weekly wages (from 1 july 2025)

Schedule D rates do NOT include ERO loadings. These are the standard Award minimum rates. Verify using the SCHADS Pay Guide [MA000100].

Schedule D classification levels

Home care employee wages (Schedules E & F)

SCHADS includes separate wage tables for home care employees. The key distinction is whether services are provided to an aged person or a person with disability. This affects which wage table applies and when rate changes occur.

Which home care table applies?

Home care employee – aged person (from 1 october 2025)

These rates apply from the first full pay period on or after 1 October 2025 for home care employees providing services to an aged person.

Indicative rates from 1 October 2025. Verify using the SCHADS Pay Guide [MA000100].

Home care employee – disability services (from 1 july 2025)

These rates apply from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2025 for home care employees providing services to a person with disability.

Standard Award minimum rates from 1 July 2025. Verify using the SCHADS Pay Guide [MA000100].

Home care classification levels

Employment types and rostering (the rules that drive overtime)

Ordinary hours (core rule)

Ordinary hours are 38 per week, or can be averaged over longer cycles (e.g., 76 per fortnight or 152 over 4 weeks) under the Award's rostering framework. If you run repeating roster patterns, roster templates help standardise compliant cycles and reduce last-minute edits.

Span of ordinary hours (day worker vs shiftworker)

• Day worker ordinary hours: 6:00 am to 6:00 pm Monday–Friday
• Shiftworker: regularly rostered outside those hours

Rosters and roster changes

• Rosters must be displayed and generally shown at least two weeks before the roster period starts.
• 7 days' notice is required for roster changes (with illness/emergency exceptions).

If you want fewer roster-change mistakes and clearer compliance controls, consider using rostering software built for award compliance. To reduce manual errors, some providers use auto-scheduling that builds rosters around availability and compliance rules. For unplanned absences, managed shift swaps can reduce last-minute roster change errors and improve coverage.

Notice obligations are easier to meet when you can notify staff of roster changes in one place. Using daily, weekly and monthly roster views makes it easier to spot weekend work, long spans, and coverage gaps before payroll. A mobile rostering app helps staff see rosters and changes quickly, which supports notice requirements and reduces disputes.

Minimum engagements (easy payroll trap)

• Full-time: minimum payment of 4 hours for each engagement in respect of ordinary hours of work
• Tip: Record each "engagement" clearly (call-in, split attendance, late cancellation) so payroll can apply the correct minimum.
• Permanent part-time and casual: minimum payment of 2 hours per engagement

Good availability tracking reduces short shifts, late changes, and accidental minimum engagement breaches. Facilities often use a kiosk time clock to capture start/finish times consistently across teams.

Broken shifts (common in community-style rostering)

Broken shifts are tightly defined and only apply to casual or permanent part-time employees:

• Breaks (excluding meal break) total not more than 4 hours
• Span of hours not more than 12 hours
• Must be by mutual agreement
• Beyond 12-hour span: double time
• Each portion must still meet the 2-hour minimum engagement rule

Tools with automatic compliance warnings can flag minimum engagement breaches, broken shift spans, and penalty-rate risks before you publish the roster.

Note: This checker does not assess whether each portion of a broken shift meets the minimum engagement requirement (2 hours per portion for part-time and casual employees). This must be checked separately.

Sleepovers (only if you follow the clause)

A sleepover means sleeping in to be on call for emergencies, with conditions including:

• Sleepover span: 8–10 hours
• Free board and lodging; separate room
• Sleepover allowance is payable (see Allowances section)
• Only emergency work should be performed during a sleepover (the Award defines an emergency and sets specific payment rules for work performed during a sleepover).
• Keep written records of each sleepover arrangement and any call-outs (time, duration, reason) to support correct payment and audit defensibility.

During high-pressure periods, live attendance helps managers see who is currently on site and respond to gaps quickly.

On-call and recall

SCHADS includes specific provisions for on-call arrangements and recalls to work. These are separate from sleepovers.

24-hour care

Where an employee is required to be available for duty for a continuous 24-hour period, a special 24-hour care provision applies (clause 25.8 in the Award). This is distinct from both sleepovers and standard shift work.

• The employee must be provided with suitable accommodation and board
• A minimum of 8 hours of the 24 must be designated as a sleepover period
• Active duty work during the 24 hours is paid at the appropriate rate
• Work during the sleepover period is paid at minimum double time

Client cancellations (NDIS and home care)

Client cancellations are a significant compliance area for NDIS providers and home care services. The Award requires payment in certain circumstances even when the service does not proceed.

Travel between clients (home care specific)

For home care employees who travel between clients during a shift, travel time between consecutive client appointments is counted as time worked and paid accordingly.

• Travel time between clients during a shift = paid time (part of ordinary hours or overtime as applicable)
• Travel from home to first client = generally not paid (unless otherwise agreed)
• Travel from last client to home = generally not paid (unless otherwise agreed)
• Vehicle/travel allowance may also apply (see Allowances section)

Penalty rates and overtime (where underpayments happen)

Weekend ordinary hours (non-casual)

If ordinary hours include weekend work:

• Saturday (midnight Fri–midnight Sat): time and a half (150%)
• Sunday (midnight Sat–midnight Sun): time and three quarters (175%)

These weekend rates substitute for (and are not cumulative on) shift premiums.

Weekend work (casual)

Casual weekend rates are:

• Saturday: 175% of the ordinary hourly rate
• Sunday: 200% of the ordinary hourly rate

These substitute for the casual loading (no stacking).

Penalty substitution rules (no stacking)

Shift allowances (afternoon/night shifts)

Shift allowances add the following to the ordinary rate:

• Afternoon shift starting 10:00 am–before 1:00 pm: 10%
• Afternoon shift starting 1:00 pm–before 4:00 pm: 12.5%
• Night shift starting 4:00 pm–before 4:00 am: 15%
• Night shift starting 4:00 am–before 6:00 am: 10%

Plus an important condition for employees working less than 38 hours/week (eligibility depends on start/finish timing).

Public holidays (special rule – do not "guess")

For full-time day workers and part-time employees, the Award uses a public holiday election:

• The employee elects to either:
  • be paid 250% of the ordinary hourly rate for hours worked on the public holiday, or
  • be paid 100% for hours worked and have the same number of hours added as paid annual leave.
• The election is made on commencement and may then be made again on the employee's anniversary date each year (and otherwise only by agreement).

Compliance tip: Record and retain the election in writing (contract pack / onboarding / annual review) so payroll can apply the correct outcome.

For casual employees, payment is 275% for hours worked on a public holiday, and this is in substitution for casual loading and weekend rates.

Public holiday election options (full-time day workers and part-time employees)

Overtime rates (use the trigger rules, not memory)

Overtime is generally paid (in summary):

Full-time:

• Mon–Fri: 150% first 2 hours, then 200%
• Sat/Sun: 200%
• Public holiday: 250%

Part-time: overtime generally applies when:

• Hours exceed the agreed rostered hours and no written variation agreement exists
• Hours exceed 10 in a day
• Hours exceed 38 per week or 76 per fortnight

Written part-time agreements are critical to managing overtime exposure.

Casual overtime: expressed in the Award as inclusive rates (e.g. 187.5% then 250%, weekend 250%, public holiday 312.5%). Do not add casual loading on top of these rates. Payroll systems must be configured to either: (a) pay the inclusive rate, or (b) calculate base + loading + overtime so the total equals the Award percentage.

Recall to work (minimum payment risk)

If recalled to work overtime after leaving, there's a minimum 4 hours' pay at the appropriate rate per recall. A centralised team messaging channel reduces missed messages about swaps, recalls, or last-minute coverage needs.

9. allowances (entitlements outside of wages)

Many operators overlook or under-claim allowances. Review this checklist quarterly:

Tip: Allowances are often missed when embedded in shift events rather than default rules. Audit one pay period per quarter.

10. leave entitlements

Full-time and part-time employees are entitled to the National Employment Standards (NES) leave provisions. Casual employees are not entitled to paid leave (but can accrue unpaid entitlements where applicable) and must be given a Casual Employment Information Statement on engagement.

Portable long service leave: Community services and contract cleaning workers may be covered by portable LSL schemes in some states (e.g., Victoria, ACT). Check your state's requirements—schemes may apply to disability support, home care, and other SCHADS-covered work.

11. compliance plan - interactive checklist

Use this checklist to audit your practices against Award requirements:

12. common mistakes (and how to avoid them)

These issues appear regularly in Fair Work audits of SCHADS employers:

1. wrong schedule applied

Mistake: Paying all employees from one wage table when multiple schedules apply (SACS, Crisis, Family Day Care, Home Care).

Fix: Identify which schedule applies to each role based on the work performed. Use SACS (Schedule B) for community service workers, Crisis (Schedule C) for crisis accommodation, Day Care (Schedule D) for family day care coordination, and Home Care (Schedules E/F) for in-home support.

2. missing the october 2025 aged care home care increase

Mistake: Not updating home care employee rates from 1 October 2025 when providing services to aged persons.

Fix: Set a calendar reminder. Home care employees caring for aged persons (65+, or 50+ for Aboriginal/Torres Strait Islander) receive an additional increase from 1 October 2025—separate from the 1 July annual review.

3. broken shift span violations

Mistake: Scheduling broken shifts where the span exceeds 12 hours or includes more than 2 breaks.

Fix: Use the broken shift checker above and configure your roster system to flag non-compliant patterns.

4. No written part-time agreements

Mistake: Part-time employees working variable hours without documented agreements, triggering overtime on all hours above the assumed minimum.

Fix: Maintain written agreements specifying agreed hours, days, and start/finish times. Document any variations in writing.

5. casual overtime calculated incorrectly

Mistake: Adding casual loading on top of overtime rates when the Award specifies inclusive percentages.

Fix: Configure payroll to either pay the Award's stated inclusive rate OR calculate components that sum to the correct total—never add loading on top of an already-inclusive rate.

6. missing allowances

Mistake: Not paying on-call, vehicle, uniform, or laundry allowances when employees are entitled.

Fix: Quarterly audit of allowance entitlements against actual payments. Add allowance triggers to roster/timesheet workflows.

7. public holiday election not recorded

Mistake: Assuming all employees want extra payment when some have elected time-in-lieu (or vice versa).

Fix: Capture election on commencement and at each anniversary. Store in employee record and apply correct calculation.

13. final takeaways

• Know which schedule applies: SACS (B), Crisis (C), Family Day Care (D), or Home Care (E/F). Each has different wage tables and conditions.
• ERO rates for SACS employees: Schedule B employees receive Equal Remuneration Order loadings—use the ERO rates, not base Award rates.
• Watch the October 2025 increase: Home care employees caring for aged persons get an additional increase from 1 October 2025—separate from July.
• Document part-time agreements: Written agreements specifying hours, days, and times are mandatory. Review and update when patterns change.
• Broken shift rules are strict: Maximum 2 breaks, 12-hour span, broken shift allowance applies. Critical for home care and disability support.
• Penalties don't stack: Weekend rates substitute for shift allowances. Casual rates substitute for casual loading. Get your payroll system configured correctly.
• Sleepover ≠ ordinary hours: Sleepover allowance applies unless disturbed—then minimum call-out rates kick in.
• Client cancellation rules: NDIS and home care employees have specific entitlements when clients cancel at short notice.
• Travel between clients: For home care employees, travel time between consecutive clients during a shift is paid time.
• Use compliant rostering tools: Modern systems can flag non-compliant patterns before they become payroll problems.

Need help implementing compliant rostering? RosterElf's Award interpretation engine automates penalty calculations for the Aged Care Award.