Direct answer: The SCHADS Award (Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award) sets minimum pay rates across nine classification levels for NDIS support workers and staff. Rates are updated each 1 July following the Fair Work Commission's Annual Wage Review, and include base rates plus casual loading, penalty rates, overtime, and allowances. Providers must pay at least the correct SCHADS rate for each worker's level and shift, and can verify current rates through Fair Work's official pay tools.
Getting SCHADS rates right is non-negotiable for NDIS providers. Underpay, even by accident, and you're exposed to back-pay, Fair Work penalties, and a payroll audit reaching back six years. Overpay, and your margins quietly bleed.
This guide explains the SCHADS Award pay structure for 2026: the nine levels, how penalties and loadings stack, and how providers apply the rates correctly. It won't quote figures that go stale the moment Fair Work updates them; instead it shows you the structure and points you to the official current rates.
What is the SCHADS Award?
The SCHADS Award is the modern award that sets minimum pay and conditions for workers in the social, community, home care, and disability services sector, including most NDIS support workers.
The SCHADS Award (MA000100) sets the minimum pay rates and conditions for NDIS support workers and sector staff across nine classification levels. NDIS providers must pay at least the correct SCHADS rate for each worker's level and the shifts they work.
If you employ support workers, SCHADS almost certainly applies to them. It governs base rates, casual loading, penalty rates for evenings, weekends, and public holidays, overtime, and a range of allowances. For how these get audited, see our SCHADS payroll audit guide.
When do SCHADS pay rates change?
SCHADS rates change every year, on 1 July.
SCHADS Award pay rates change on 1 July each year, following the Fair Work Commission's Annual Wage Review. The 2026-27 rates apply from 1 July 2026. Always use the current rates from Fair Work, since they update annually.
This annual change is exactly why providers get caught out. A rate that was correct last financial year is wrong from 1 July. Your payroll has to update every year, and any agreement or system using the old rate falls out of compliance on that date.
Important: Verify the current SCHADS rates through the Fair Work Ombudsman's Pay and Conditions Tool (PACT) before setting payroll. This article deliberately avoids quoting dollar figures because they change each 1 July, and using an outdated rate is a compliance and back-pay risk.
The nine SCHADS classification levels
SCHADS classifies workers into levels based on their role, qualifications, and responsibilities. Each level has pay points within it.
Level | Typical roles (indicative) |
|---|---|
Level 1 | Entry-level support, minimal experience |
Level 2 | Support workers with some experience or qualifications |
Level 3 | Experienced support workers, coordinators |
Level 4 | Team leaders, senior support roles |
Level 5 | Specialist and supervisory roles |
Level 6 | Program and management roles |
Level 7 | Senior management |
Level 8 | Senior professional and management |
Key point: Classifying a worker at the wrong level is a common and costly SCHADS error. The level must reflect the worker's actual role and responsibilities, not just their title. Under-classifying to save money is a leading cause of underpayment findings.
The exact number of pay points and the roles at each level are defined in the award. Check a worker's correct classification against the current award before setting their pay.
How SCHADS pay is calculated
A worker's actual pay is rarely just the base rate. It stacks:
Base rate for the worker's level and pay point.
Casual loading (a set percentage) if the worker is casual.
Penalty rates for evenings, Saturdays, Sundays, and public holidays.
Overtime rates once thresholds are exceeded.
Allowances (broken shift, sleepover, kilometre, and others).
SCHADS pay is the base rate for the worker's level, plus casual loading if applicable, plus penalty rates for the day and time worked, plus overtime and allowances. The order these apply in matters, and getting it wrong causes underpayment.
This stacking, and the order it applies in, is where SCHADS gets genuinely complex. A Sunday evening broken shift can involve four or five rules at once. Our SCHADS payroll audit guide breaks down how errors compound, and it connects to travel charging and SIL funding, where overnight shifts and ratios add more layers.
Penalty rates, casual loading, and overtime
The loadings that catch providers out:
Casual loading: a set percentage on top of the base rate for casual employees, in place of leave entitlements.
Saturday, Sunday, public holiday penalties: higher rates for weekend and holiday work.
Evening and night penalties: shift loadings for qualifying hours.
Overtime: higher rates beyond the standard hours threshold.
Sleepover and broken shift allowances: set amounts for these specific shift types.
Key point: Casual loading and weekend penalties are the two loadings most often applied incorrectly, either missed, applied to the wrong base, or stacked in the wrong order. Each error, repeated across a workforce, becomes a significant back-pay liability.
How providers stay SCHADS-compliant
Compliance comes down to three habits:
Update rates every 1 July when Fair Work releases the new figures.
Classify every worker correctly at their true level.
Calculate pay in the correct award order, with the loadings and penalties for each shift, provably.
The third is where manual payroll and generic tools fall short: they process what you input but can't show the SCHADS calculation order at audit. That's the gap a SCHADS payroll audit targets. Payroll that calculates in award order and logs the formula per shift keeps you both compliant and provable. See how it connects on the NDIS management software guide and NDIS service provider platform page.
Key takeaways
SCHADS sets minimum pay across nine classification levels for NDIS staff.
Rates change every 1 July; always use the current Fair Work figures.
Pay stacks: base, casual loading, penalties, overtime, allowances, in a specific order.
Wrong classification and misapplied loadings are the top underpayment causes.
Payroll that calculates in award order and logs it per shift is both compliant and audit-provable.
Frequently asked questions
What are the SCHADS Award pay rates for 2026?
SCHADS Award pay rates for 2026-27 apply from 1 July 2026 and are set across nine classification levels following the Fair Work Commission's Annual Wage Review. Because rates change annually, check the current figures on the Fair Work Ombudsman's pay tools before setting payroll.
When do SCHADS pay rates increase?
SCHADS pay rates increase on 1 July each year, following the Fair Work Commission's Annual Wage Review. Providers must update payroll to the new rates from that date.
How many levels are in the SCHADS Award?
The SCHADS Award has nine classification levels, each with pay points. A worker's level reflects their role, qualifications, and responsibilities, not just their job title.
What is the SCHADS casual loading?
Casual employees receive a set casual loading percentage on top of the base rate, in place of paid leave entitlements. The exact percentage is set in the award; confirm the current figure with Fair Work.
How is SCHADS pay calculated?
SCHADS pay is the base rate for the worker's level, plus casual loading if applicable, plus penalty rates for the day and time, plus overtime and allowances. The order these apply in affects the total, and errors in the order cause underpayment.
Why is getting SCHADS rates wrong a risk?
Underpaying SCHADS rates exposes a provider to back-pay claims reaching back up to six years, Fair Work penalties, and interest. Overpaying erodes margins. Correct classification and calculation protect both compliance and profitability.
SCHADS Award pay rates for 2026 come down to three things: use the current rates (updated every 1 July), classify workers correctly, and calculate pay in the right award order. Get those right and you pay staff fairly and stay out of Fair Work's sights. Get them wrong and the back-pay math is brutal.
The providers who handle SCHADS well aren't guessing at rates; their payroll applies the current figures in the correct order and proves it, shift by shift.
Find your SCHADS exposure before Fair Work does.
Book a free FairWork Diagnostic: a 30-minute review with Ahmed and a written payroll exposure report within 3 business days. No product pitch on the call.
About CareVisor
CareVisor is the audit-ready operating system for Australian NDIS providers, built in Sydney by NDIS operators who have prepared for and passed Quality and Safeguards Commission audits firsthand. SCHADS payroll is calculated in award order and logged per shift, alongside rostering, claiming, participant management, incident reporting, and worker screening, all mapped to the NDIS Practice Standards with a time-stamped audit trail. CareVisor turns payroll from a hidden liability into provable evidence. Book a FairWork Diagnostic or start your free trial at carevisor.com.au.
