SCHADS Award 2026: Pay Rates, Levels, and What’s Coming in 2027
Careers | SCHADS Award | Pay Rates
Reviewed and current as of August 2026, next Fair Work update due March 2027
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Quick Answer
Yes, the SCHADS Award increased in 2026. The Fair Work Commission handed down its Annual Wage Review decision on 2 June 2026, confirming a 4.75% increase to all SCHADS Award minimum pay rates, effective from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026. This guide explains what the SCHADS Award is, how classification levels and penalty rates work, and what’s expected next, including the interim increase anticipated in October 2026 and the bigger structural reform due in 2027.
4.75%
Confirmed SCHADS increase from 1 July 2026
2 Jun 2026
Date the FWC handed down its decision
$26.44/hr
New National Minimum Wage from 1 July 2026
2.8 million
Australians receiving an award pay rise
Is the SCHADS Award Going Up in 2026? Yes, Here’s Exactly What Was Confirmed
This is the question most people land on this page wanting answered, so here it is in full and without ambiguity. On 2 June 2026, the Fair Work Commission handed down its 2026 Annual Wage Review decision, confirming a 4.75% increase to all modern award minimum wages, including every classification and pay point under the SCHADS Award. The new rates apply from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2026.
Around 2.8 million Australians on minimum and award wages receive a pay rise as a result, and the lowest-paid award-reliant workers in the country, roughly 100,000 people, receive a slightly higher increase, lifting the National Minimum Wage to $26.44 per hour, up from $24.95. This is the second consecutive year of confirmed increases, SCHADS Award rates rose from 1 July 2025 as well.
Important: This Is Separate from the Aged Care Work Value Case
The 4.75% Annual Wage Review increase is separate from the multi-year Aged Care Work Value Case run by the ANMF, which has already delivered substantial pay increases for aged care nurses and personal care workers under the Aged Care Award, with a further increase due on 1 August 2026. Not every worker receives both increases. Which one applies depends on your specific award, your classification, and your employer, and whether you’re covered by the SCHADS Award or the separate Aged Care Award.
What Is the SCHADS Award?
The SCHADS Award, formally the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award 2010 (MA000100), is the legally enforceable Australian award that sets minimum wages and employment conditions for more than 250,000 workers across the social, community, home care, and disability services sectors. If you work as a support worker, home care employee, personal carer, youth worker, case worker, or community services coordinator, the SCHADS Award almost certainly sets your minimum pay, penalty rates, allowances, and basic entitlements.
The SCHADS Award is made and maintained by the Fair Work Commission and enforced by the Fair Work Ombudsman. It applies nationwide, a Level 2 worker in Brisbane is covered by exactly the same minimum base rate as a Level 2 worker in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, or Adelaide, although some remote and very remote roles attract additional regional loadings under specific schedules.
SCHADS Award Classifications: The Four Streams
Correctly calculating SCHADS Award pay starts with knowing the correct classification. The award covers four major streams.
This guide focuses on the two most commonly searched streams, Home Care Employees and Social and Community Services, because the gap between them is real and matters. A Level 2 Home Care Employee and a Level 2 SACS worker are not paid the same base rate, so applying the wrong stream when calculating pay produces systematic errors from day one.
SCHADS Award Levels Explained
Each stream has multiple classification levels, and within each level there are usually several pay points reflecting experience, qualifications, or time spent at that level.
Home Care Employee (HCE) Levels 1 to 4
Level 1, entry-level, domestic tasks or supervised support, no formal qualification required. Level 2, personal care roles with basic training or experience, the most common level for aged care and disability support workers. Level 3, more advanced duties requiring higher competence or qualifications, may include non-complex medication assistance, behaviour support, or manual handling. Level 4, highly skilled roles requiring qualified, experienced staff providing high-needs or complex support.
Social and Community Services (SACS) Levels 1 to 8
Level 1, entry-level positions requiring close supervision. Level 2, developing roles involving direct client support with moderate autonomy. Level 3, experienced workers delivering programs, coordinating activities, and maintaining case notes. Level 4, senior support roles such as case workers, team leaders, or specialist support workers. Levels 5 to 8, professional and managerial positions requiring higher qualifications or formal leadership responsibility.
SCHADS Award Pay Rates: What You’ll Actually Earn
This is the part where it matters to get specific rather than vague, and also the part where it’s important to be honest about precision. The SCHADS Award has more than 3,000 possible pay rate combinations once you factor in stream, level, pay point, employment type, and applicable penalties. No single blog post can responsibly list every figure and guarantee it’s still accurate by the time you read it. What this guide can do is anchor you to real, sourced figures and point you to the one place that’s always current.
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Worth Knowing
From 1 July 2026, every rate above increases by 4.75%. Rather than publish calculated figures here that could be slightly off by the time the official pay guide is released, take your current confirmed rate and check the Fair Work Ombudsman’s published 2026/27 pay guide, or verify it yourself in seconds using the tool below. The single most reliable way to get your exact rate is the free Fair Work Pay and Conditions Tool (PACT) at calculate.fairwork.gov.au, select the SCHADS Award, enter your classification, level, and employment type, and it returns your current legally binding rate, automatically updated the moment new rates take effect.
How Penalty Rates Work, With Real Numbers
Penalty rates are where SCHADS Award pay genuinely changes shape depending on when you work, and they’re worth understanding properly, because the difference between a weekday shift and a Sunday shift is substantial.
- Sunday penalty, permanent employees receive 175% of their base rate for Sunday work. For a Level 1 worker on $26.30/hr (2025/26 rate), that’s $46.03/hr on a Sunday. Casual employees on Sundays receive their base rate plus both the Sunday penalty and their 25% casual loading stacked together, which can take a Level 1 casual rate above $58/hr.
- Saturday loading, typically in the order of 150% of the base rate for permanent employees, though the exact percentage depends on the specific stream and schedule.
- Public holidays, the highest penalties under the award, paid for every hour worked on a gazetted public holiday, regardless of classification level, one of the few penalties that doesn’t taper based on time of day.
- Evening work and overtime, evening loadings apply to work performed after a set time (commonly 8pm), with the exact threshold depending on classification and stream. Overtime applies when a worker exceeds contracted hours, rostered hours, maximum shift length, or the agreed ordinary span of hours.
Broken Shifts and Sleepovers: Home Care Specific Rules
Broken shifts are common in home care, where a worker’s day is split across multiple visits with a genuine break in between, for example, a morning visit and a separate evening visit. They’re tightly restricted under the award, if specific conditions around minimum engagement and gap length aren’t met, the arrangement legally isn’t a broken shift at all, and overtime or other penalties may apply instead. This is one of the most frequent sources of Fair Work enforcement action against employers, so getting it right matters on both sides.
Sleepovers attract a fixed allowance for the sleepover period itself, plus payment at normal rates for any active work performed during that time. From 1 June 2026, pre- and post-sleepover work must be treated as a single shift for overtime calculation purposes, a clarification that removes ambiguity for both home care employers and the workers calculating their entitlements around sleepover shifts.
Allowances Under the SCHADS Award
All allowances are indexed and updated periodically, vehicle and kilometre allowances specifically are typically adjusted from 1 July each year alongside the wage review. Check the Fair Work Ombudsman’s allowances schedule for current figures.
Is There a SCHADS Award 2027 Increase Coming?
What’s Genuinely Confirmed vs Still Preliminary
The 4.75% increase from 1 July 2026 is not the only significant SCHADS change on the horizon. Schedule E home care and disability workers may receive an additional interim pay rise from 1 October 2026 as part of a broader reform process, though this has been described as preliminary by industry bodies and is worth continuing to monitor. Separately, the Fair Work Commission is part-way through a major review relating to gender-based undervaluation in care and community sector roles. A new Final Classification Structure is expected to replace several current SCHADS classification schedules from 1 October 2027, a substantial structural reform that providers and workers alike should start paying attention to now, well before it arrives. The next standard Annual Wage Review decision is expected around June 2027, applying from 1 July 2027 as usual.
If you’re specifically watching for a 2027 rate change, the reliable move is the same as always, bookmark the Fair Work PACT tool and check it directly once the Annual Wage Review decision is announced, rather than relying on a fixed figure published in advance of that decision.
Common SCHADS Award Compliance Mistakes
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Common Mistakes
Many employers unintentionally breach the SCHADS Award simply because of its complexity. The most common mistakes are misclassifying a worker’s level, miscalculating overtime, missing or underpaying travel allowances, incorrectly structuring broken shifts, failing to update payroll after each annual wage review, mishandling sleepover rules, paying flat rates instead of correct penalties, and not honouring minimum engagement periods. With the confirmed 4.75% increase now applying from 1 July 2026, this is precisely the window when classification and payroll errors most commonly creep in. Review every classification and update payroll systems before the first full pay period of the new financial year, not after.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the SCHADS Award increasing in 2026?
Yes. The Fair Work Commission confirmed a 4.75% increase to all SCHADS Award pay rates on 2 June 2026, effective from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026.
Will there be a SCHADS Award increase in 2027?
A standard Annual Wage Review decision is expected around June 2027, applying from 1 July 2027, in line with the usual annual cycle. Separately, a major structural reform, the Final Classification Structure, is expected from 1 October 2027. Neither figure is confirmed yet, check the Fair Work PACT tool once each decision is announced.
What does the SCHADS Award cover?
More than 250,000 workers in social, community, home care, and disability services across Australia, including aged care home support, NDIS support work, youth services, and crisis accommodation. It sets minimum wages, classifications, penalty rates, allowances, and basic working conditions.
What is the exact SCHADS Award pay rate for my level in 2026?
It depends on your stream, level, pay point, and employment type, there are over 3,000 possible combinations. The only source guaranteed to be current and accurate is the Fair Work Pay and Conditions Tool (PACT) at calculate.fairwork.gov.au, or the official Fair Work Ombudsman SCHADS pay guide.
How do I know my correct SCHADS Award classification level?
Your level depends on your actual duties, qualifications, and degree of responsibility, not your job title. Your employer must classify you correctly in your employment agreement, referencing the classification descriptors set out in the award itself.
Is travel between clients paid under the SCHADS Award?
Yes. Home care workers travelling between clients must be paid for travel time plus kilometre reimbursement at the applicable award rate, this is a mandatory entitlement.
Does the SCHADS Award include sleepover payments?
Yes. Sleepover shifts attract a fixed allowance for the sleepover period, plus payment at normal rates for any active work performed. From 1 June 2026, pre- and post-sleepover work must be treated as a single shift for overtime purposes.
What should I do if I think I’m being underpaid?
Confirm your correct classification, then check your rate against the Fair Work Pay and Conditions Tool. Raise the discrepancy with your employer directly. If it isn’t resolved, the Fair Work Ombudsman provides free, confidential advice on 13 13 94 and can investigate suspected underpayments, which can be backdated.
Why Getting the SCHADS Award Right Matters Beyond Compliance
Understanding the SCHADS Award, and the confirmed 4.75% increase now in effect from 1 July 2026, is essential for anyone working in or employing across aged care, home care, disability, and community services. But applying it correctly is not simply a legal box to tick. It’s a fundamental part of supporting a fair, professional, and motivated workforce, one that in aged care specifically translates directly into the quality of care people receive every day.
At Superior Care Group, we take this seriously because we’ve always believed exceptional aged care begins with exceptional people. When we invest in our team through fair pay, ongoing development, and a genuinely respectful workplace culture, our residents benefit from that in every interaction. As a family-owned organisation with decades of experience across Wellington Park in Wellington Point, Brisbane, and Merrimac Park on the Gold Coast, we bring a personal approach to how we support our staff that larger corporate providers often cannot.
If you’re an aged care or support worker looking for an employer who takes fair pay and correct classification seriously, not as a compliance exercise, but as a genuine reflection of how people deserve to be treated, explore current opportunities on our Careers page.
Join a Team That Values Fair Pay and Genuine Care
We’re recruiting across both our Queensland residences right now.
Wellington Park Wellington Point, Brisbane South East (07) 3822 1876
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