Marine Towage Award

If you operate a marine towage business in Australia - berthing and unberthing ships, harbour, port or coastal towage and associated line handling - and employ tug crew who are not award-free, the Marine Towage Award 2020 (MA000050) generally applies to that work. Other maritime awards cover tourism and charter vessels, offshore oil and gas and port operations, so confirm coverage against the Fair Work source before setting pay and conditions for your crew.

MA000050 classifies employees by the position held on the tug and the certificate of competency it requires, from general crew and general purpose ratings up through mates, marine engineers and masters. You place each person at the classification matching their actual role and the ticket they use, then pay at least that minimum, with higher-ticketed positions sitting higher. Read the current rate for the correct classification from the Fair Work Pay Calculator rather than relying on memory.

Casual crew are paid an hourly rate plus a casual loading, commonly 25% across modern awards, in place of paid leave and other permanent entitlements. In towage the loading also interacts with shift, weekend, public holiday and out-of-hours arrangements, so casual pay is rarely a simple flat add-on. Treat 25% as a guide only and confirm the exact loading, and how it combines with penalties and availability, for this award on the Fair Work source before running pay.

Towage runs around the clock, so shift loadings combine with weekend penalties when crew work Saturdays and Sundays. As a general guide across awards, Saturday penalties commonly run around 25% and Sunday around 50%, but MA000050 sets its own figures and shift arrangements. Map each shift's start time and day, then confirm the current loadings and weekend rates for the relevant classification and roster on the Fair Work Pay Calculator before processing pay.

Public holiday entitlements flow from the National Employment Standards and the award. Ports keep operating on public holidays, and as a guide public holiday work across awards can attract penalties of up to 150%, which can stack with shift loadings on an overnight movement. The award's own provisions determine what applies to a given shift and employment type. Always verify the current public holiday entitlement for the relevant crew on the Fair Work source before processing that pay run.

Overtime generally applies to hours worked beyond an employee's ordinary or rostered hours, with the award setting overtime rates that step up after the first hours and separate rates on Sundays and public holidays, alongside rules for breaks between shifts. Long ship movements and back-to-back call-outs can push crew into overtime. Identify which hours count as overtime for each roster and confirm the applicable overtime rate for this award on the Fair Work Pay Calculator.

Because towage is on demand, crews are frequently brought in for ship movements at short notice. Rather than named standby allowances, this out-of-hours and additional work is handled through overtime and penalties, and a minimum payment may apply when crew are called in. Identify which arrangements apply to your roster, and confirm the current overtime and penalty entitlements for this award against the Fair Work source rather than assuming a flat rate covers them.

Part-time crew work fewer than full-time hours on a reasonably predictable pattern, and the award generally requires a written agreement setting out the agreed hours, with changes agreed in writing. Part-timers receive pro-rata leave and the same classification minimum rates as full-timers, though the on-demand nature of towage makes rostering more complex, and hours outside the agreed pattern may attract overtime. Check the part-time provisions in the award for the full requirements before engaging crew on that basis.

The award can provide allowances suited to towage work, such as nominated-voyage, cyclone (shipkeeping), emergency-maintenance, multiple-tow, additional-skills and meal allowances; availability and out-of-hours duties are generally covered through overtime and penalties rather than named standby allowances. Because several relate to specific conditions or duties, they are easy to miss on a complex roster. Identify which apply to each crew role and confirm the current amounts on the Fair Work Pay Calculator before paying.

Yes. Annual leave loading is an extra payment on top of base pay when a permanent employee takes paid annual leave, set at 17.5% under this award. It applies to full-time and part-time crew, while casuals do not accrue annual leave and instead receive the casual loading. Continuous shift workers may have alternative treatment where their shift loadings would otherwise exceed the loading. Apply it when processing leave for permanent staff 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 classification, allowance and shift arrangement on the Fair Work Pay Calculator every year.

Towage is a highly regulated, safety-critical operation, and the award's classifications reflect the position a person holds on the tug and the certificate of competency it requires. A crew member who acts as master, mate or marine engineer is doing higher-classified work than a general rating and should be paid accordingly. Map each person's actual role and the tickets they hold and use to the right classification, then confirm the current rate on the Fair Work source.

The risks with MA000050 sit in classifying crew by ticket and role, handling availability and out-of-hours duties through overtime and penalties, and capturing stacked shift, weekend and public holiday penalties on a 24/7 operation. The safest approach is to match each role to the right classification, apply the correct loadings, penalties and overtime entitlements, and refresh every figure from the Fair Work Pay Calculator each 1 July. Valont runs award-compliant payroll for marine towage operators, mapping crew to the correct classifications, allowances and penalties so figures stay current and accurate.