SCHADS Award Calculator & Pay Rates 2026–27

The SCHADS award (Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award 2010, MA000100) sets minimum pay for disability support workers, community workers, caseworkers and home carers. From 1 July 2026 a Level 2 pay point 1 support worker earns at least $36.22 an hour ($1,376.49 a week), or $45.28 as a casual. Pick your level, pay point and shifts below to see weekly gross pay with penalty rates and your take-home pay after tax for 2026–27.

Updated 2026-10-03 · Fair Work Commission award text consolidated to 1 September 2026 · ATO 2026–27 tax

Weekly take-home pay$1,389.13$1,774.74 gross for 38 hours · $72,235 a year if every week is the same

Base hourly rate	$46.70
Weekday (38h × $46.70)	$1,774.74
Gross per week	$1,774.74
Tax withheld per week (ATO weekly scale 2)	$386
Income tax + Medicare (annualised)	$385.61
Take-home per week	$1,389.13
Employer super (12%)	$212.97

Weekday

$1,775

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SCHADS award pay rates from 1 July 2026 (social and community services)

These are the ordinary rates for social and community services (SACS) employees, which includes disability services work in group homes and day programs. For Levels 2 to 8 they already include the equal remuneration order (ERO) uplift of 23% to 45%: clause 15 says the "current weekly wage" is the ordinary rate for all purposes, so payroll should never use the lower bare minimum. Hourly = weekly ÷ 38; annual = weekly × 52; casuals add 25%.

Level	Pay point	Weekly	Hourly	Annual (full-time)	Take-home / week
Level 1	PP1	$1,046.90	$27.55	$54,439	$897.73
	PP2	$1,080.60	$28.44	$56,191	$920.14
	PP3	$1,119.10	$29.45	$58,193	$945.74
Level 2	PP1	$1,376.49	$36.22	$71,577	$1,118.32
	PP2	$1,419.79	$37.36	$73,829	$1,147.76
	PP3	$1,462.96	$38.50	$76,074	$1,177.12
	PP4	$1,501.95	$39.53	$78,101	$1,203.63
Level 3	PP1 Associate diploma / advanced certificate	$1,538.59	$40.49	$80,007	$1,228.55
	PP2	$1,582.94	$41.66	$82,313	$1,258.71
	PP3 3-year degree entry	$1,616.71	$42.55	$84,069	$1,281.67
	PP4 4-year degree entry	$1,649.97	$43.42	$85,798	$1,304.29
Level 4	PP1	$1,774.74	$46.70	$92,286	$1,389.13
	PP2	$1,821.07	$47.92	$94,696	$1,420.64
	PP3	$1,867.93	$49.16	$97,132	$1,452.50
	PP4	$1,909.51	$50.25	$99,295	$1,480.77
Level 5	PP1	$2,030.20	$53.43	$105,570	$1,562.84
	PP2	$2,073.91	$54.58	$107,843	$1,592.57
	PP3	$2,122.13	$55.85	$110,351	$1,625.36
Level 6	PP1	$2,218.02	$58.37	$115,337	$1,690.56
	PP2	$2,267.02	$59.66	$117,885	$1,723.88
	PP3	$2,316.16	$60.95	$120,440	$1,757.30
Level 7	PP1	$2,398.95	$63.13	$124,745	$1,813.59
	PP2	$2,449.36	$64.46	$127,367	$1,847.87
	PP3	$2,499.20	$65.77	$129,958	$1,881.76
Level 8	PP1	$2,602.75	$68.49	$135,343	$1,951.72
	PP2	$2,653.94	$69.84	$138,005	$1,982.94
	PP3	$2,705.27	$71.19	$140,674	$2,014.25

Crisis accommodation Levels 1–4 are paid the same as SACS Levels 3–6.

Home care pay rates: disability and aged care

Home care employees who support people with a disability in their own homes are classified under Schedule E and are not covered by the equal remuneration order, which is why their rates are lower than SACS rates for similar work. That gap is what the Fair Work Commission's gender-undervaluation decision targets: an interim rise of about 15% from the first full pay period on or after 1 December 2026, then a new structure from 1 October 2027.

Home care – disability	Pay point	Weekly now	Hourly now	Weekly from 1 Dec 2026	Hourly from 1 Dec 2026
Level 1	PP1	$1,036.80	$27.28	$1,192.30	$31.38
Level 2	PP1	$1,096.60	$28.86	$1,261.10	$33.19
	PP2	$1,104.10	$29.06	$1,269.70	$33.41
Level 3	PP1 Certificate III	$1,119.10	$29.45	$1,287.00	$33.87
	PP2	$1,153.70	$30.36	$1,326.80	$34.92
Level 4	PP1	$1,221.00	$32.13	$1,404.20	$36.95
	PP2	$1,245.40	$32.77	$1,431.70	$37.68
Level 5	PP1 Degree or diploma	$1,309.20	$34.45	$1,505.60	$39.62
	PP2	$1,360.80	$35.81	$1,541.90	$40.58

Home care workers supporting older people were moved to a new aged care structure on 1 January 2025 after the aged care work value case:

Home care – aged care	Weekly	Hourly
Level 1 – Introductory	$1,239.00	$32.61
Level 2 – Home carer	$1,307.80	$34.42
Level 3 – Qualified	$1,376.70	$36.23
Level 4 – Senior	$1,431.70	$37.68
Level 5 – Specialist	$1,486.80	$39.13
Level 6 – Team leader	$1,541.90	$40.58

SCHADS penalty rates and shift loadings

Weekend and public holiday rates replace (are not added to) shift loadings. For casuals the award writes weekend and public holiday rates inclusive of the 25% casual loading, so a casual on Sunday gets 225%, not 250%. Dollar figures below are for Level 2 pay point 1 ($36.22 an hour).

When	Full/part-time	Per hour	Casual	Casual per hour
Weekday (ordinary hours)	100%	$36.22	125%	$45.28
Afternoon shift	112.5%	$40.75	137.5%	$49.81
Night shift	115%	$41.66	140%	$50.71
Saturday	150%	$54.34	175%	$63.39
Sunday	200%	$72.45	225%	$81.50
Public holiday	250%	$90.56	275%	$99.61

Overtime: full-time SACS and crisis accommodation employees get time and a half for the first 3 hours Monday to Saturday, then double time; disability, home care and day care employees get time and a half for the first 2 hours, then double time. Sunday overtime is double time and public holiday overtime double time and a half. Part-time and casual employees go onto overtime after 38 hours a week or 10 hours in a shift.

Sleepover, broken shift and other allowances

Allowance	Amount	Notes
Sleepover allowance	$62.87 per night	4.9% of the standard rate (cl. 25.7(d)); work during the sleepover is paid at overtime rates, minimum 1 hour
Broken shift – 1 unpaid break	$21.81 per broken shift	1.7% of the standard rate (cl. 20.12(a)); disability services and home care only
Broken shift – 2 unpaid breaks	$28.87 per broken shift	2.25% of the standard rate, by agreement (cl. 20.12(b))
On-call allowance	$25.66 Mon–Fri / $50.81 weekend or public holiday, per 24 hours	2.0% / 3.96% of the standard rate (cl. 20.11)
First aid allowance	1.67% of the standard rate a week (about $21.43)	Full-time; pro rata for part-time and casual (cl. 20.6)
Vehicle allowance	$1.05 per km (1 Sep 2026 – 28 Feb 2027), then $1.01	Temporary rate under cl. 20.7(aa); $1.01 otherwise (cl. 20.7(a))
Meal allowance (overtime)	$17.30	More than 1 hour of overtime, again after 4 hours (cl. 20.5)

Worked examples: SCHADS pay after tax

Casual disability support worker, Level 2 PP1, 32 hours (16 weekday hours, 8 on Saturday, 8 on Sunday): $724.47 + $507.13 + $652.02 = $1,883.62 gross a week. If every week looked like this, take-home would be about $1,463.17 a week after income tax and Medicare levy, plus $226.03 employer super.
Full-time case manager, Level 4 PP1: $1,774.74 a week, $92,286 a year, take-home $72,235 ($2,778.26 a fortnight). At a public benevolent institution that lets you package the full $15,900 general cap tax-free, spendable income rises to about $77,323 – $5,088 a year more.
Part-time graduate, Level 3 PP3, 30 hours including two 7.5-hour afternoon shifts: $1,356.12 gross a week, about $1,104.47 take-home.

For hours that change week to week, use the calculator above for each week, or annualise your year-to-date pay with the YTD income calculator. To check an hourly figure against a salary, see the hourly pay calculator.

Which SCHADS level am I?

Level	Typical work	Qualifications / entry point
Level 1	New starters with limited experience; routine clerical, reception, domestic or personal care tasks under close direction.	None required; employer must offer substantial training.
Level 2	Disability support workers and community workers applying established procedures; may guide a few lower-level staff.	Relevant Certificate III/IV (Cert IV starts at PP2) or equivalent experience; diploma entry point.
Level 3	Supervisors of a house or small team, graduates, and specialists solving problems of limited difficulty.	Associate diploma / certificate with experience; 3-year degree enters at PP3, 4-year degree at PP4.
Level 4	Experienced practitioners (case managers, social workers, counsellors) and supervisors of a function.	Degree plus relevant experience.
Level 5	Senior practitioners and coordinators responsible for a program or significant function.	Degree plus substantial experience.
Level 6	Managers of a service or several programs; complex policy and planning work.	Degree plus extensive experience.
Level 7	Senior managers with responsibility across the organisation.	Extensive management experience.
Level 8	Executive / most senior management positions covered by the award.	Extensive management experience.

How pay points and progression work

Pay points within a level: after each 12 months of continuous employment you are eligible to move up one pay point if you have shown competency and satisfactory performance for the prior 12 months (cl. 13.3(a)).
Moving to a higher level is by promotion or reclassification only (cl. 13.3(b)) – the level follows the work you do (Schedules B–F), not your job title.
Graduates doing work related to their degree start at Level 3: pay point 3 with a three-year degree, pay point 4 with a four-year degree (Schedule B.3.1(g)).
Employees appointed for a relevant Certificate IV start at Level 2 pay point 2; a diploma starts at Level 2 pay point 2 and advances after 12 full-time-equivalent months (Schedule B.2.1(e)–(f)).
Level 1 employees doing personal care/domestic work under supervision move to pay point 2 after 12 months (full-time) or 1,976 hours (part-time) of industry experience (Schedule B.1.3(d)).
From 1 October 2027 the Fair Work Commission's gender-undervaluation decision replaces annual increments with progression after set periods of industry experience plus competency, under a new single classification structure.

SCHADS pay increases: 2025, 2026 and 2027

From	Increase	Status	Detail
1 July 2025	3.50%	Paid	Annual Wage Review 2025
1 July 2026	4.75%	Paid	Annual Wage Review 2026 – first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026
1 December 2026	15.0%	Scheduled	Interim gender-undervaluation increase for home care employees in disability care: 15% for most points (Level 4 PP2 14.96%, Level 5 PP2 13.31%) – deferred from 1 October 2026 by [2026] FWCFB 232
1 October 2027	–	Scheduled	Schedule E abolished; translation into the new structure – home care disability work about +2% to +7% (median ~3.7%) on the December 2026 rate, disability support work up to ~17% more

The 1 October 2027 restructure applies to SACS, crisis accommodation and home care employees alike. Nobody's pay goes down: if your current rate is above the new minimum for your translated classification, you keep it. Annual increments are replaced by progression after set periods of industry experience.

Frequently asked questions

What is the SCHADS Level 2 pay rate in 2026?

From the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026, Level 2 pays $36.22 an hour at pay point 1 rising to $39.53 at pay point 4 ($1,376.49–$1,501.95 a week). Casuals get 25% more.

What is the SCHADS Level 3 pay rate?

$40.49 to $43.42 an hour from 1 July 2026. Graduates with a three-year degree start at pay point 3 ($42.55), four-year degree graduates at pay point 4.

What is the SCHADS Level 4 pay rate?

$46.70 an hour at pay point 1 up to $50.25 at pay point 4 – $92,286 to $99,295 a year full-time.

What is the SCHADS Sunday rate for casuals?

225% of the ordinary hourly rate, inclusive of the casual loading – $81.50 an hour at Level 2 pay point 1. Saturday is 175% and public holidays 275% for casuals.

Sources

Figures are taken from official government publications and were last reviewed on 2026-10-03.