Local Government Industry Award

If your council or council-controlled entity sits within the national industrial relations system and employs staff who are not covered by a registered enterprise agreement, the Local Government Industry Award 2020 (MA000112) generally applies. It covers a very broad range of indoor and outdoor council roles. Some states regulate local government under their own systems, and many councils run enterprise agreements, so confirm which instrument applies against the Fair Work source before setting pay.

MA000112 uses a banded classification structure that spans the full breadth of council work, with each band defined by the skill, qualification and responsibility level of the role. You assess the duties an employee actually performs, place them in the matching band, and pay at least that band's minimum. Title alone is not enough, particularly for multi-skilled roles. Once you have the correct band, look up its current minimum rate on the Fair Work Pay Calculator.

Casual employees under MA000112 receive an hourly rate plus a casual loading, commonly 25% across modern awards, in place of paid leave and other permanent entitlements. The loading can interact differently with weekend and public holiday penalties, so the casual mechanics are not always a simple flat add-on. Treat 25% as a guide only and confirm the exact loading for your engagement type on the Fair Work source before running pay.

Ordinary hours worked on Saturdays and Sundays attract weekend penalties under the award, which can stack with shift loadings for evening or overnight work such as security or after-hours services. As a general guide, Saturday penalties commonly run around 25% and Sunday around 50%, but MA000112 sets its own figures by role and engagement type. Confirm the current weekend rates for the relevant shift on the Fair Work Pay Calculator before processing pay.

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%, and employees who would normally work that day but do not because it is a public holiday are generally entitled to their ordinary pay. The award's own provisions determine what applies to a given role and shift, so verify the current public holiday entitlement on the Fair Work source.

Overtime generally applies when an employee works beyond the ordinary hours set by the award, such as exceeding the daily or weekly limit or working outside the spread of ordinary hours. The award typically pays overtime at penalty rates that step up after the first couple of hours, with higher rates on Sundays and public holidays, plus rules for call-outs and rest breaks between shifts. Confirm the current overtime multipliers for your situation on the Fair Work Pay Calculator.

Part-time employees work fewer than full-time hours on a reasonably predictable pattern, and the award generally requires a written agreement setting out the agreed hours, days and times, with changes also agreed in writing. Part-timers receive pro-rata leave and the same band minimum rates as full-timers. Hours worked outside the agreed pattern may attract overtime. Check the part-time provisions in the award for the full requirements that apply to your council.

Junior rates can apply to younger employees in some roles, expressed as a percentage of the relevant adult minimum, and apprentices and trainees are paid on percentage-based scales that rise with their stage of training. Whether a junior or apprentice rate applies depends on the role and the classification. Identify the correct percentage for the employee's age or training stage and confirm the current resulting rate on the Fair Work Pay Calculator.

Because council work is so varied, the award provides a wide range of allowances. These can include leading hand or in-charge allowances, first aid, meal, vehicle and travel, on-call and standby, and various disability or trade-related allowances for outdoor, depot and works employees. Some are paid per shift, per day or per kilometre, so they are easy to miss. Identify which apply to each role and confirm the current amounts on the Fair Work Pay Calculator.

Yes. Annual leave loading is an extra payment on top of base pay when an employee takes paid annual leave, and under this award it is 17.5% of the minimum rate. It applies to full-time and part-time employees taking annual leave, while casuals do not accrue annual leave. Some shift workers may have alternative arrangements. Apply the loading when processing leave payments and confirm the calculation against the Fair Work source.

Award 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%. You must apply the new rates from that pay period, not the calendar date, so verify the current figures for each band and allowance on the Fair Work Pay Calculator every year.

It is common for a council to run an enterprise agreement covering most staff while the award still applies to certain roles, new entities or recently acquired functions. Each cohort must be paid under the instrument that actually covers it, and the better-off-overall test governs how an agreement sits against the award. Map which instrument covers each group, and confirm award figures against the Fair Work source for anyone the agreement does not reach.

The risks with MA000112 sit in the breadth: correctly banding indoor and outdoor roles, knowing whether the award or an enterprise agreement applies to each cohort, capturing on-call, standby and shift loadings, applying the full set of allowances, and refreshing every figure each 1 July. The safest approach is to anchor each rate to the Fair Work Pay Calculator and review pay annually. Valont runs award-compliant payroll for local government employers, mapping roles to the right classifications, allowances and penalties so figures stay current and accurate.