Base hourly rates are only half the story. The SCHADS Award contains over 30 distinct allowances that can significantly boost an employee's take-home pay—and significantly complicate an employer's payroll.
Here is a summary of the most common allowances for the 2024-2025 financial year. Note: Always verify exact cents with the latest Pay Guide from the Fair Work Ombudsman, as indexation occurs annually on July 1st.
1. Vehicle & Travel Allowances
Motor Vehicle Allowance
Rate: ~$0.99 per kilometer (Casual/Perm)
When applicable: Paid when an employee is required to use their private vehicle for work duties (e.g., driving a client to an appointment, or traveling between two clients during a shift).
Travel Time
Rate: Ordinary hourly rate
When applicable: Time spent traveling between clients is considered time worked. It must be paid at the appropriate hourly rate (though typically not overtime rates unless the total hours trigger overtime).
2. Shift & Roster Allowances
Broken Shift Allowance
Rate: ~$19.98 per shift (1 break) / ~$26.46 per shift (2 breaks)
When applicable: Paid when a single shift is split into parts with an unpaid break of more than 60 minutes. Very common in Home Care.
Sleepover Allowance
Rate: ~$62.47 per night
When applicable: Paid for sleeping at a client's premises (usually an 8-hour span).
On-Call Allowance
Rate: ~$25.32 (Mon-Fri) / ~$50.14 (Weekend/PH) per 24-hour period
When applicable: Paid when an employee is required to be contactable and ready to return to work, but is not actually working.
3. Qualification & Uniform Allowances
First Aid Allowance
Rate: ~$20.89 per week (Full-time) / ~$0.55 per hour (Casual)
When applicable: Paid to employees who hold a First Aid Certificate and are required by their employer to be able to perform first aid.
Laundry Allowance
Rate: ~$1.49 per shift (or up to ~$7.20 per week)
When applicable: Paid when an employee is required to wear a uniform that they must launder themselves.
Are you Missing Allowances?
The most common payroll error we see at CrossVault isn't the base rate—it's missing allowances.
- Do you pay Broken Shift allowance for split shifts?
- Do you capture every kilometer for the Vehicle Allowance?
- Do you accidentally pay a flat rate instead of the First Aid allowance?
Automate Your Allowance Checks
Stop calculating manually. CrossVault's Timesheet Validator instantly flags missing allowances in your roster data.