Horse and Greyhound Training Award

If you train horses or greyhounds for racing in Australia and employ staff to do that work - stablehands, track riders, strappers, kennel hands or forepersons - the Horse and Greyhound Training Award 2020 (MA000008) generally applies. It is specific to training animals for racing, so ground maintenance, veterinary or breeding work may fall under different awards. Confirm coverage against the Fair Work source before setting pay and conditions, particularly if your operation spans more than just training.

The award sets minimum rates across classification levels for stable and kennel staff, defined by the skills, responsibilities and experience of the role - from entry-level stablehands and kennel hands up to track riders, leading hands and forepersons. You classify each employee by the work they actually perform, using the award's definitions, then pay at least the minimum for that level. Adult and junior rates apply by age. Always confirm the current rate for the relevant classification on the Fair Work Pay Calculator, as it changes each year.

Casual stable and kennel staff are paid an hourly minimum plus a casual loading, which is commonly 25% across modern awards, in place of paid leave and other permanent entitlements. The loading does not replace weekend, public holiday or overtime entitlements, which can still apply on top. Treat 25% as a guide only and confirm the exact casual loading and how it interacts with penalties and early-start provisions for MA000008 on the Fair Work source before running pay.

Racing is a seven-day operation, so Saturday and Sunday work can attract weekend penalties on top of the ordinary rate. As a general guide across awards, Saturday loadings are commonly around 25% and Sunday around 50%, but this award sets its own figures, which interact with the industry's early starts and broken days. Confirm the current weekend penalty for the relevant classification and shift on the Fair Work Pay Calculator rather than assuming a number.

Public holiday entitlements flow from the National Employment Standards and the award. As a guide, public holiday work across awards can attract penalties of up to 150% of the minimum rate, and animals still need care on those days. Permanent staff who would normally work but do not because it is a public holiday are generally entitled to their ordinary pay. Verify the public holiday rate and arrangements for your staff on the Fair Work source before a pay run that includes one.

Overtime generally applies when an employee works beyond the ordinary hours set by the award, outside the spread of ordinary hours, or beyond daily or weekly limits, with rates that step up after the first couple of hours and higher rates on Sundays. The broken-day structure of stable work - trackwork before dawn and afternoon duties - makes the spread-of-hours and break rules important. Identify which hours count as overtime for each worker and confirm the applicable rate via the Fair Work Pay Calculator.

Part-time employees work fewer than full-time hours on a reasonably predictable pattern, and the award requires the agreed hours, days and times to be documented, with changes also agreed. Part-timers receive pro-rata leave and the same minimum rates as full-timers for their classification. Given the broken-day nature of stable work, the agreed pattern needs care. Check the part-time provisions in the award for the full requirements and confirm the rate on the Fair Work source.

Yes. The racing industry employs many young people, and the award provides junior rates set as a percentage of the relevant adult rate, increasing with the employee's age until they reach the adult rate. The percentage depends on age and the classification. Apply the correct junior percentage for each young employee and confirm the resulting rate, along with any adult rate that applies once they reach the relevant age, on the Fair Work Pay Calculator.

The award can provide for allowances connected to the work, which may include a racecourse attendance allowance for attending race meetings and trials, a transport allowance when horses are floated, a track riders' boots, cap and vest allowance, plus meal allowances for race-meeting and qualifying overtime work. Race-day and transport allowances are easy to miss when a worker spends a day away from the home stable. Identify which apply to each role and confirm the current amounts on the Fair Work Pay Calculator, as they change with the annual review.

Annual leave loading is an extra payment on top of base pay when a permanent employee takes paid annual leave, and under this award it is 17.5% of the minimum rate of pay. It applies to full-time and part-time stable and kennel staff taking annual leave; casuals do not accrue annual leave. Apply the loading when processing leave payments for eligible staff and confirm the calculation against the Fair Work source.

Minimum rates and many allowances are reviewed each year in the Fair Work Commission's Annual Wage Review and take effect from the first full pay period on or after 1 July. The 2026 review increased modern award minimums by 4.75%. To stay compliant you must apply the new rates from that pay period, not the calendar date, so verify the current figures for each classification and allowance on the Fair Work Pay Calculator every year.

The award covers employees engaged in training horses or greyhounds for racing, not the licensed trainer running their own business, who is the employer rather than an employee. The people the trainer employs - stablehands, track riders, kennel hands and forepersons - are the ones the award protects. Where a rider or worker is genuinely self-employed, the position can differ, but the substance of the arrangement governs. Confirm coverage and engagement type for each person via the Fair Work source.

Start by classifying each employee correctly, then apply the current minimum rate, the early-start and weekend penalties, overtime for broken days, and the race-day, travel and other allowances the award provides, refreshing every figure from the Fair Work Pay Calculator after each 1 July increase. Accurate records of split shifts, race-day work and travel are essential. Valont's award-compliant payroll service handles this classification, hours, penalty and allowance mapping for racing employers so stable and kennel staff are paid correctly every cycle.