On 15 March 2024, the Fair Work Commission (FWC) made a decision to increase wage rates for certain aged care workers under the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award 2010 (SCHADS Award), the Aged Care Award 2010, and the Nurses Award 2020 (Nurses Award).
The percentage amount of increase varied between different classification levels.
The FWC also indicated that the classification structure under the awards for employees working in these areas would need to be amended.
Why have changes to the SCHADS Award been introduced?
The reason for the changes was because the FWC found that the current level of minimum wages set for these workers under these Awards was undervalued when compared to minimum wages for other types of comparable roles.
Additionally, as the roles of care workers in the aged care sector had become more complex in recent times, the higher rates of pay were justified by the FWC.
When will the changes come into effect?
In June 2024 the FWC determined that the increase to wages should be phased in, in up to two phases, depending on the amount of the relevant increase.
This will operate as follows:
- Where the % increase for a particular classification level is more than 3%, then half the total increase will take effect on 1 January 2025, with the remainder of the increase taking effect on 1 October 2025;
- Where the % increase for a particular classification level is more than 3% but half the total increase is less than 3%, a 3% increase will take effect on 1 January 2025, with the remainder of the increase taking effect on 1 October 2025; and
- Where the % increase for a particular classification level is less than 3%, then the total increase will take effect on 1 January 2025.
On 11 September 2024 the FWC made a final decision about the classification structures in the Awards which will take effect from 1 January 2025. These changes will operate as set out below.
Aged care workers under the SCHADS Award
The SCHADS Award covers care workers providing care to aged persons in their own home.
The classification structure for direct care aged care workers in the SCHADS Award will be amended so that it will mirror that for direct care aged care workers in the Aged Care Award.
This will also mean there will now be one classification schedule for home care workers working in disability in the SCHADS Award, and another for home care workers working in aged care.
For new aged care employees employed under the SCHADS Award on or after 1 January 2025, employees will have to be classified under the new classification descriptions in the new Schedule F of the Award.
For existing aged care employees, who have been employed prior to 1 January 2025, there will be a new Schedule G which will show which new classification they should be moved into.
For example, a Home Care Employee working in aged care currently classified at Level 5, Pay Point 1, will become a Home Care Employee, Level 6 on 1 January 2025.
For two of these classifications, there will be provisions which state that existing employees employed prior to 1 January 2025 will be paid the rate of pay associated with their previous classification, as this will be higher than under the new classification they are moving into. This will only affect employees at Level 4, Pay Point 2 and employees at Level 5, Pay Point 2.
Assistants in Nursing working in home care for aged persons
From 1 January 2025, Assistants in Nursing who provide assistance to aged persons in the home care industry will be covered by the SCHADS Award and not the Nurses Award.
The SCHADS Award will also be amended to make clear that such employees who are employed prior to 1 January 2025 will retain their right to an additional week of annual leave currently provided by the Nurses Award when they transfer to the SCHADS Award.
This will not be an entitlement for new Assistants in Nursing employed from 1 January 2025 onwards.
For new Assistants in Nursing employed from 1 January 2025 onwards, they will have to be classified under the new classification descriptions in the new Schedule F of the Award.
For existing Assistants in Nursing employees already employed before 1 January 2025, there will be a new Schedule G which will show which new classification they should be moved into.
Care workers under the Aged Care Award
The Aged Care Award applies to employees working in aged care in residential settings (e.g. aged care homes).
The Aged Care Award will be amended so that there is a separate classification structure for general / indirect aged care workers (cooks, cleaners, clerical staff etc), and one for direct care workers. The direct care classification structure will match that under the SCHADS Award.
For new direct care workers employed on or after 1 January 2025, they must be classified under this new structure.
For existing direct care workers, employed prior to 1 January 2025 there is a new Schedule I which sets out how their existing classification translates into the new classification structure. For example, someone who is currently a Direct Care, Level 7 employee under the existing classifications will become a Direct Care, Level 6, Team Leader employee under the new classifications from 1 January 2025.
For one employee classification (namely a Direct Care, Level 3 employee) they will continue to be paid the rate of pay associated with this level, as it is higher than the rate of pay for the Direct Care, Level 2 that they will transition to 1 January 2025. This only affects this one classification.
Assistants in Nursing working in residential care for aged persons
As above for the SCHADS Award, Assistants in Nursing working in residential aged care will now come under the Aged Care Award. The Award will be amended so that new employees as of 1 January 2025 will come under the direct care classification structure.
For existing Assistants in Nursing, already employed prior to 1 January 2025, there is a translation schedule which sets out how their existing classification under the Nurses Award translates to the new classifications under the Aged Care Award.
There are also provisions which preserve existing Assistants in Nursings’ entitlements to an extra week of annual leave.
You can see the changes that are being made to the three Awards here:
Other changes to the SCHADS Award
Aside from the changes outlined above, there have been other changes to the SCHADS Award which came into effect recently, or are proposed to come into effect in the near future.
These are:
- Changes to the coverage clause of the Award have been made to make it clear it covers therapeutic care workers (by changing the definition of social and community services sector in clause 3.1 of the award to say “the provision of social, community and disability services including the provision of personal care including therapeutic care”). This change came into effect on 25 September 2024. Learn more here.
- There are applications from both employer groups and unions proposing amendments to the SCHADS Award to clarify rules around breaks between shifts and work performed before and after sleepovers, and to provide employees with greater entitlements when working sleepovers. There are further hearings in these matters between 4 and 6 November 2024 where we should hear more about what will happen next in these applications. Learn more here.
- The FWC is also considering increasing minimum wages for disability support workers under the SCHADS Award due to “gender undervaluation” (i.e. the idea that many workers in these roles are female and this may have led to the work being undervalued compared to equivalent roles in male-dominated industries). This matter is being heard together with an application from a union to vary the Award to make clear that any employers funded by NDIS always come within the social and community services sector “stream” of the Award, rather than the home care sector stream. These matters are being considered by the FWC in December 2024. Learn more here.
We will provide further updates on these matters as soon as the FWC publishes further decisions.
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