Hydrocarbons Field Geologists Award

If you operate in the oil and gas industry in Australia and employ field geologists in connection with petroleum or natural gas exploration and production, the Hydrocarbons Field Geologists Award 2020 (MA000064) is likely the relevant instrument for that role. It is a narrow award specific to field geology in hydrocarbons. Geologists in other industries, or other oil and gas roles, may be covered by different awards or be award-free. Confirm coverage against the Fair Work source before setting pay and conditions.

The award sets minimum rates through mudlogger-based classifications - trainee mudlogger, competent mudlogger, senior mudlogger and data engineer - that step up with experience, qualifications and responsibility, so a senior mudlogger or data engineer is paid above a trainee. You classify each employee by the work they actually perform and their level of responsibility, then pay at least the minimum for that classification. Because the role is specialised, the structure is relatively simple. Always confirm the current rate for the relevant classification on the Fair Work Pay Calculator, as it changes each year.

Where field geologists are engaged casually, they are generally paid an hourly minimum plus a casual loading, which is commonly 25% across modern awards, in place of paid leave and other permanent entitlements. Much field geology work is engaged on a permanent or rostered basis rather than casually. Treat 25% as a guide only and confirm whether casual engagement applies, the exact loading and how it interacts with field and roster provisions for MA000064 on the Fair Work source before running pay.

The award pays a daily rig allowance on top of the annual retainer for each day worked on the rig, and the disabilities of remote field work are absorbed into the published rates rather than paid as a separate allowance. Other allowances cover office attendance, excess attendance, rig-up and rig-down, attendance at courses and travelling time. Each is paid in the circumstances the award sets out, and the amounts change with the annual review. Identify which apply to your geologists and confirm the current figures on the Fair Work Pay Calculator.

Because the work is roster-based and often remote, the award's treatment of weekend and public holiday work flows from its hours and roster provisions rather than a standard retail-style grid. As a general guide across awards, weekend penalties commonly run around 25% on Saturday and 50% on Sunday and public holidays can reach up to 150%, but this award sets its own arrangements. Verify what actually applies to the relevant roster and day for MA000064 on the Fair Work source before processing pay.

Overtime generally applies where a field geologist works beyond the ordinary or rostered hours set by the award. Given the rostered and sometimes remote nature of the work, how ordinary hours, rosters and overtime interact needs care, and the daily rig allowance and travel arrangements sit alongside any overtime. Identify whether the hours in question fall within ordinary rostered work or trigger overtime, and confirm the applicable overtime rate for this award via the Fair Work Pay Calculator.

Part-time employees work fewer than full-time hours on a reasonably predictable basis, with the agreed pattern documented and changes agreed, and they receive pro-rata leave and the same minimum rates as full-timers for their classification. Part-time arrangements are less common in roster-based field geology than full-time or fixed rosters, but where they apply the award's part-time provisions govern. Check those provisions in the award and confirm the pro-rata rate on the Fair Work source.

Field geology in hydrocarbons frequently involves travel to remote well sites and fly-in fly-out arrangements, and the award contains provisions dealing with travel and related entitlements alongside the daily rig allowance. Whether time and costs are paid, and how, depends on those provisions and the specific arrangement. Rather than assuming travel is unpaid or absorbed, identify the travel entitlements the award provides for your arrangement and confirm the current treatment against the Fair Work source.

The award's most distinctive payment is the daily rig allowance, paid on top of the annual retainer for each day worked on the rig, with the disabilities of remote field work absorbed into the published rates rather than paid as a separate allowance. It also provides office attendance, excess attendance, rig-up and rig-down, attendance-at-courses and travelling-time allowances. Because this is a specialised award, the rig and travel provisions carry much of the weight rather than a broad list of minor allowances. Identify which apply to each engagement 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 an eligible 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 field geologists taking annual leave; casuals do not accrue annual leave. Apply the loading when processing leave payments for eligible staff and confirm the calculation, and any interaction with roster arrangements, against the Fair Work source.

The retainer, the daily rig allowance and the award's other 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 the daily rig allowance on the Fair Work Pay Calculator every year.

Coverage depends on the work and the arrangement rather than seniority alone. Some senior professionals can be award-free or genuinely engaged as contractors, but a field geologist employed to do field work covered by the award is generally covered by it. Assuming seniority alone takes someone outside the award, or treating an employee as a contractor when the relationship is really employment, carries underpayment and sham-contracting risk. Confirm coverage and engagement type for each person via the Fair Work source.

Start by classifying each field geologist at the right level for their experience and responsibility, then apply the current retainer and daily rig allowance, travel entitlements and any overtime that flows from their roster, refreshing every figure from the Fair Work Pay Calculator after each 1 July increase. Accurate records of rosters, field days and travel are essential given how the award is structured. Valont's award-compliant payroll service handles this classification, allowance and roster mapping for hydrocarbons employers so field geologists are paid correctly every cycle.