Gardening & Landscaping Services Award Pay Guide 2025: Rates, Penalties & Allowances

Navigating the 2025 pay rates and entitlements in the gardening industry is easier with a clear guide. This article breaks down the key pay components under the Gardening and Landscaping Services Award 2020 including base wage rates, overtime and weekend penalty rates, and common award allowances. Whether you employ lawn maintenance employees or landscape construction teams, use this pay guide to ensure you’re calculating pay correctly and in compliance with MA000101. Staying on top of award rates not only keeps you legal but also keeps your employees happy and fairly compensated.

What is the 2025 Minimum Pay Rates for Gardeners & Landscapers (MA000101)?

Under the Gardening and Landscaping Services Award 2020, the base pay rates for full-time and part-time adult employees are as follows (effective 1 July 2025):

Sourced from: Fair Work Pay Guide

These are the minimum wages for each level of skill/qualification. For example, a general labourer or new starter (Introductory) must be paid at least $24.28 per hour, while a trade-qualified landscaper (Level 4) earns at least $28.12 per hour. It’s fine (and common) to pay above these rates for experienced workers, but definitely not below.

Casual employees: Add 25% to the above hourly rates. The award’s casual loading is 25% for all classifications. So a casual Level 3 would get $27.00 × 1.25 = $33.75 per hour (inclusive of loading). This compensates for no sick or annual leave. Note that casuals also get penalty rates for overtime or weekends on top of the loaded rate (more on that below).

Keep in mind that junior employees (under 20 years) have lower percentage rates (e.g. 18-year-olds get 80% of the adult rate). Apprentices likewise have their own wage scales as a percentage of the Level 4 rate. Always consult the full award or pay guide for those detailed tables if you employ juniors or apprentices.

What are the Overtime & Weekend Penalty Rates? 

The Gardening & Landscaping Award sets specific penalty rates when employees work outside normal hours or on weekends. Here’s a summary:

• Ordinary span: The award’s ordinary hours are Monday to Friday, 6:00am to 6:00pm, and Saturday 6am up to 12 noon. Any work beyond these hours is considered overtime (or attracts a penalty for weekends).
• Overtime (Mon–Sat): For full-time and part-time employees, overtime is paid at 150%  for the first 2 hours, and 200% after 2 hours. This applies if, for example, an employee works past 6pm on a weekday, works late on a Saturday, or exceeds 38 hours in a week.
  e.g., A Level 2 employee on $25.85/hr who works 3 hours after hours on a Tuesday would get $38.78/hr for the first 2 OT hours, then $51.70/hr for the 3rd hour.
• Sundays: Sundays are not typically part of ordinary hours in this award. If a permanent employee does work on a Sunday, it’s treated as overtime at 200% for all hours. So, a full-time gardener making $27.00/hr (Level 3) earns $54.00/hr on Sunday.
• Public Holidays: All hours worked on a public holiday are paid at 250% the normal rate for full-time/part-time staff. (The award also guarantees a minimum of 4 hours pay if a staff member works on a public holiday.)
• Casuals: Casual employees also receive overtime and holiday penalties, on top of 25% loading. Effectively, a casual gets 175% of the base rate for the first 2 hours of overtime (which is 150% + 25% loading), 225% after 2 hours (double time plus loading), and 275% on public holidays. For Sundays, a casual’s double time plus loading is also 250% (since Sunday for permanents is 200%, plus the 25% loading makes 225% – however many awards simplify it to the same as after-2-hours overtime rate). Always check the pay guide for the exact figures, but as a rule: casuals get an extra 25% on top of whatever penalty rate a full-timer gets.

When Do Penalties Apply? 

If you schedule an employee outside the standard span (e.g. an early 5am shift or a late evening shift to avoid daytime heat), “additional hours” penalties may apply (150% for first 2 hours outside 6am-6pm on weekdays). Similarly, if work continues after 12pm on a Saturday, those afternoon hours are overtime (time-and-a-half then double time). Sunday work, as mentioned, is all overtime. It’s important to roster carefully and/or budget for these higher rates.

What Are the Allowances Under MA000101?

In addition to wages, the Gardening and Landscaping Services Award 2020 provides various allowances to employees for certain expenses or special duties. Key allowances include:

• Meal Allowance: If an employee is required to work more than 1.5 hours of overtime (or past 8 hours on a Saturday/Sunday), they must be provided a meal or paid a meal allowance. This allowance is about $18.84 per occasion. This covers the cost of an extra meal when working late.
• First Aid Allowance: An employee who has a first aid certificate and is appointed as the designated first aid officer is entitled to an extra $0.56 per hour (up to a max of $21.37 per week). This compensates them for that responsibility.
• Tool Allowance: Qualified tradespersons (like a landscaper who is a trade gardener/landscaper at Level 4 & 5 only) must be paid an allowance if they have to supply their own tools. This is an additional $0.42 allowance.
• Vehicle & Travel Allowances: If an employee is required to use their own vehicle for work purposes (for example, driving between job sites), the award prescribes $0.98 per kilometre as a vehicle allowance. Additionally, if an employee has to work at a distant location requiring overnight stay, the employer must pay for reasonable accommodation or reimburse those costs, and pay travel time at ordinary rates for time spent traveling beyond normal home-to-work travel.
• Leading Hand Allowance: Although not listed in the brief excerpt above, note that if an employee is put in charge of other employees (e.g. supervising team), the award often provides a small hourly allowance based on the number of people supervised (for example, in many awards it’s around $0.56/hr extra for 1–2 people, $1.12/hr for 3-6 people, $1.41/hr for 7-9 people and $1.97 per hour for 10+ people).

How to Manage Pay & Compliance?

Paying your landscaping staff correctly involves applying the right base rate, adding any applicable loadings or penalties, and including relevant allowances. It can get complex, especially with varying shift times or travel. Here are some tips:

• Use the Pay Guide: Fair Work Ombudsman publishes a downloadable Pay Guide for the Gardening and Landscaping Award
• Stay Updated Annually: Rates change in July each year. Set a reminder each June to check for the new rates from the Annual Wage Review. Implement the changes from 1 July to avoid underpayments.
• Apply Allowances: If your team is entitled to an allowance, you must include that in payroll. It’s easy to overlook allowances, but employees will appreciate the extra compensation (and it’s legally required).
• Consider Payroll Software: Given the layers of rates and rules, using an award interpretation payroll software can automate these calculations. The software can automatically apply the correct overtime rates and update wages when the award changes, reducing admin burden and compliance risk.

How Workstem Simplifies Gardening & Landscaping Services Award Compliance

Simplify award interpretation and payroll processing with Workstem, the all-in-one workforce management & payroll software designed for every industry. Our system supports 122+ modern awards & 34 EAs, including the Gardening & Landscaping Services Award 2025, and keeps you up-to-date with changes in wage rates, penalty rates, and overtime rules.Workstem offers:

• Automated award interpretation
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• Employee self-service app for rosters and payslips
• Seamless integrations with Xero, NetSuite, and more

Choose from our Standard or Advanced plan to suit your business needs, and stay Fair Work compliant with confidence.

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FAQs About the Gardening & Landscaping Services Award

Q1: What is the minimum hourly rate for a gardener under the award in 2025?

A1: For an adult full-time introductory employee, the minimum hourly rate as of 1 July 2025 is $24.28. If the person has some experience or trade qualifications with a Level 2 classification is $25.85/hr and Level 3 is $27.00/hr.

Q2: What penalty rate applies for weekend work in this award?

A2: Sundays are paid at 200% of the normal rate for permanent employees. For example, a full-time Level 1 would get about $49.90 per hour on Sunday. Saturdays: if the work is within ordinary hours (before 12 noon Saturday), it’s just the normal rate. However, work on Saturday afternoon (after 12pm) is overtime by 150% for the first 2 hours, then 200%. So if a landscaper works a long Saturday from 8am to 4pm, the morning 4 hours are normal time, and the 4 hours after noon would be 1.5x and 2x.

Q3: What allowances might gardening staff be entitled to?

A3: Common allowances under MA000101 include the meal allowance (around $18 when working long overtime), a vehicle allowance ($0.98 per km) if using their own car for work tasks, a tool allowance for trade-qualified employees who supply their own tools ($0.42 per hour) and a first aid allowance (around $0.56 per hour for an appointed first-aider)

Q4: Do casuals also get overtime and allowances?

A4: Yes. Casual employees under the gardening award receive the same entitlement to allowances (e.g. if a casual uses their car for work, they still get $0.98/km; if they qualify for a meal allowance, they get it too). For overtime and penalties, casuals get them on top of their 25% loading.

Read More：

Gardening and Landscaping Services Award Guide [MA000101]

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