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Table of content
- What is the Building and Construction General On-site Award?
- Who is entitled to the Building and Construction Award?
- How is the shiftwork arranged in the Building and Construction Award?
- How are wages and allowances calculated in the Building and Construction Award?
- How is the leave managed in the Building and Construction Award?
- How to keep in compliance with the Building and Construction Award？
- How can Workstem assist you?
This article provides guidelines on the Australian Building and Construction General On-site Award package. For more information on this award, please refer to the Building and Construction General On-site Award [MA000020]
What is the Building and Construction General On-site Award?
The Building and Construction General On-site Award is an industrial award in Australia that sets out the minimum terms and conditions of employment for workers in the building and construction industry, including tradespeople, labourers, and apprentices.
It covers matters such as wages, hours of work, leave entitlements, allowances, and other benefits.
The award is administered by the Fair Work Commission and applies to employers and employees who are engaged in on-site work in the building and construction industry.
Who is entitled to the Building and Construction Award?
Coverage
The Building and Construction Award covers employers in the building and construction industry and their employees who fit within the classifications of the award.
The building and construction industry means work done on-site, including:
- general building and construction
- civil construction
- metal and engineering construction
General building and construction
- any construction, alteration, extension, restoration, repair, maintenance, demolition or dismantling of buildings, structures or works that form part of land
- site clearance work including earth-moving, excavation and site restoration work
- any landscaping work or installation work associated with a general building and construction project.
Civil construction
Civil construction includes any construction, repair, maintenance or demolition of:
- civil and mechanical engineering projects
- car parks (except car park buildings and car parks that are within a building)
- power transmission, light, television, radio, communication, radar, navigation and observation towers or structures
- power houses, chemical plants or hydrocarbons and/or oil treatment plants or refineries
- silos
- sports and entertainment complexes.
It includes the following work if it is in connection with civil construction work as defined above:
- traffic management
- dredging and sluicing work
- construction work for landscape gardens
- batch plants and precast yards.
Civil construction also includes the construction of:
- roads, railways and tramways
- water and sewerage works
- dams, channels, wate works and pipe tracks
- bridges and tunnels
- drains or conduits.
Metal and engineering construction
Metal and engineering construction includes metal trades work where it is for construction, fabrication, erection and/or installation work related to:
- power stations, oil refineries, terminals and depots, and chemical, petro-chemical and hydrocarbon plants
- major industrial and commercial undertakings and associated plant , plant facilities and equipment
- plant, plant facilities and equipment for chemicals and minerals
- transmission towers, lines and associated plant, plant facilities and equipment
- lifts and escalators.
It also includes maintenance, repair and servicing work (not including minor work) in connection with contracts for on-site metal and engineering construction work.
Examples of employers and employees covered by the Building and Construction Award include:
- domestic and commercial building companies
- labourers and assistants
- forklift, excavator and other machinery drivers/operators
- concrete workers
- scaffolders
- traffic controllers
- pool installers, repairers and restorers
- tradespersons such as bricklayers, carpenters, locksmiths, plasterers, painters, roof tilers and tilelayers and apprentices in these trades.
The Building and Construction Award also covers labour hire businesses and their employees who are placed with an organisation in the building and construction industry.
Check the award for full information on who is covered and the classification descriptions.
Source reference: Building and Construction General On-site Award [MA000020] clauses 2, 4 and schedule A
Types of employment
Employees under this award will be employed in one of the following categories:
- daily hire employees;
- full-time weekly hire employees;
- part-time weekly hire employees; or
- casual employees.
The Award does not generally cover
- an employee excluded from award coverage by the Act;
- employees who are covered by a modern enterprise award, or an enterprise instrument (within the meaning of the Fair Work (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Act 2009 (Cth)), or employers in relation to those employees; or
- employees who are covered by a State reference public sector modern award, or a State reference public sector transitional award (within the meaning of the Fair Work (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Act 2009 (Cth)), or employers in relation to those employees.
How is the shiftwork arranged in the Building and Construction Award?
Shiftwork
General building and construction and metal and engineering construction
- Employed continuously (inclusive of public holidays) for 5 shifts Monday to Friday
|
Afternoon, night and early morning shift |
Morning and early afternoon shifts |
||
| 150% of the ordinary hourly rate |
150% of the ordinary hourly rate |
- Employed less than 38 ordinary hours worked over 5 consecutive shifts Monday to Friday
|
150% for the first 2 hours and 200% thereafter |
Civil construction
|
Types |
Condition | Hourly Rate |
| Overtime Work | Work beyond normal hours or outside of scheduled shifts |
200% of the ordinary hourly rate |
|
Shift rates |
Afternoon or night shift (except Saturday, Sunday or holiday) |
115% of the ordinary hourly rate |
|
Saturdays |
Work from Friday 00:00 to Saturday 00:00 |
150% of the ordinary hourly rate |
| Sundays and public holidays | Subject to clause 17.2(l), the provisions of clause 36—Public holidays |
clause 36 |
|
Five successive shifts |
Works on any afternoon or night shift that does not continue for at least 5 consecutive afternoons or nights |
150% of the ordinary hourly rate |
|
Night shift |
a night shift for a longer period than 4 successive weeks |
130% of the ordinary hourly rate |
| a night shift worker who works on a fixed schedule without rotating or alternating with another shift or day work, allowing the employee to have at least one-third of their working time off night shift in each cycle |
130% of the ordinary hourly rate |
|
| Call outs | a shift worker who is called to work after their normal working hours or on a day when they are not scheduled to work |
200% of the ordinary hourly rate |
Hours of Work
|
Employment type |
Ordinary hours per week | Minimum daily hours | Maximum daily hours |
|
Full-time |
38 hours per week |
11.5 hours |
|
| Part-time | less than 38 hours per week |
8 hours |
|
| Casual | No guaranteed hours | 4 hours |
8 hours |
Breaks
|
Types of Working |
Breaks |
|
Day workers |
There must be a cessation of work and of working time of not less than 30 minutes, to be taken between noon and 1.00 pm, or as otherwise agreed between an employer and a majority of employees. |
| Shift workers |
At no later than 5 hours after the start of each shift there must be a cessation of work of 30 minutes’ duration to allow shiftworkers to take a meal break which will count as time worked. |
|
Working with toxic materials |
Where an employee is using toxic materials and the work continues to the employee’s meal break, the employee will be entitled to take washing time of 10 minutes immediately prior to the meal break. |
| Hot work |
Where an employee works for more than 2 hours in a place where the temperature has been raised by artificial means to 46 C and above, the employee is entitled to 20 minutes rest after every 2 hours work without loss of pay. |
| Cold work |
Where an employee works for more than 2 hours in a place where the temperature is lowered by artificial means to less than 0 C, the employee is entitled to 20 minutes rest after every 2 hours work without loss of pay. |
How are wages and allowances calculated in the Building and Construction Award?
Minimum rates
|
Level |
Minimum weekly rate |
Minimum hourly rate |
|
Level 9 (ECW 9) |
1164.10 | 30.63 |
|
Level 8 (CW/ECW 8) |
1144.00 |
30.11 |
| Level 7 (CW/ECW 7) | 1116.80 |
29.39 |
|
Level 6 (CW/ECW 6) |
1085.80 | 28.57 |
|
Level 5 (CW/ECW 5) |
1057.60 | 27.83 |
|
Level 4 (CW/ECW 4) |
1026.30 |
27.01 |
| Level 3 (CW/ECW 3) | 995.00 |
26.18 |
| Level 2 (CW/ECW 2) | 966.80 |
25.44 |
|
Level 1 (CW/ECW 1)—CW/ECW 1 (level d) |
947.80 | 24.94 |
|
Level 1 (CW/ECW 1)—CW/ECW 1 (level c) |
931.10 |
24.50 |
| Level 1 (CW/ECW 1)—CW/ECW 1 (level b) | 918.70 |
24.18 |
| Level 1 (CW/ECW 1)—CW/ECW1 (level a) | 901.00 |
23.71 |
Overtime rates
The overtime rate payable to an employee depends on the time at which the overtime is worked:
|
For overtime worked on |
Overtime rate (% of ordinary hourly rate) |
|
Monday to Friday – First 2 hours |
150% |
|
Monday to Friday – After 2 hours |
200% |
|
Work during meal break |
200% |
| Consecutive hours off duty |
200% |
| Public Holiday |
250% |
Penalty rates
When an employee works ordinary hours on the following days, they are entitled to the following penalty rates:
|
Time of ordinary hours worked |
Full-time and part-time employees (% of minimum hourly rate of pay) |
|
Saturday |
150% for the first 2 hours and 200% thereafter |
|
After Saturday 12:00 pm |
200% |
|
Saturday following Good Friday |
250% |
| Sunday |
200% |
| Public holiday |
250% |
Allowance
|
Allowance |
Classification | Payable |
| Tool allowance | Artificial stoneworker, carpenter and/or joiner, carpenter-diver, carver, bridge and wharf carpenter, floor sander, letter cutter, marble and slate worker, stonemason or tile layer |
$ 33.18 per week |
| Tool allowance | Caster, fixer, floor layer specialist or plasterer |
$ 27.44 per week |
|
Tool allowance |
Refractory bricklayer or bricklayer | $ 23.55 per week |
| Tool allowance | Roof tiler, slate-ridger or roof fixer, tradespersons in the metals and engineering construction sector |
$ 27.44 per week |
| Tool allowance | Signwriter, painter or glazier |
$ 17.38 per week |
| Meal allowance | all employees—overtime of at least one and a half hours |
$ 7.96 per week |
|
Meal allowance |
all employees—overtime of at least one and a half hours |
$ 15.96 per week |
|
Meal allowance |
Forward journey | $ 15.96 per week |
| Compensation for clothes and tools | Employer pays for reasonable cost of transport when employee starts work at time when it is unreasonable for them travel by usual means home |
$ 1924 maximum |
|
Living away from home allowance—Distant work—Entitlement |
When full-time or part-time employees are required to work 80+ kilometres away from their usual place of work, the employer pays for reasonable fare for travel from the employee’s usual place of work to the new place of work. | $ 27.44 per week |
| Camping allowance | Per complete week |
$ 27.44 per week |
|
Camping allowance |
Broken parts of the week | $ 27.44 per week |
| Forward journey | Additional for daily hire employees |
$ 27.44 per week |
| Weekend return home |
$ 27.44 per week |
|
| Travelling between construction sites | Employee’s own vehicle |
$ 27.44 per week |
How is the leave managed in the Building and Construction Award?
In the Building and Construction Award, leave entitlements for employees are determined by the National Employment Standards (NES) and the classification of the employee.
Annual leave
Annual leave is provided for in the NES. It does not apply to casual employees.
|
|
Personal Leave
For each year of service with an employer (other than periods of employment as a casual employee of the employer), an employee is entitled to 10 days of paid personal/carer’s leave.
Public holidays
Public holiday entitlements are provided for in the NES.
- Employees and employers can agree to substitute another day or part-day for a public holiday or part-day public holiday under the National Employment Standards (NES).
- An employee is entitled to be absent from his or her employment on a day or part-day that is a public holiday in the place where the employee is based for work purposes.
How to keep in compliance with the Building and Construction Award？
To comply with the Building and Construction Award in Australia, businesses in the Building and Construction industry can follow:
|
Minimum wage |
Employers must pay their employees at least the minimum wage set by the Fair Work Commission. |
|
Superannuation |
Employers are obligated to make superannuation contributions on behalf of their eligible employees, which includes calculating and paying the correct amount on time. |
| Taxation |
Businesses must accurately calculate and withhold income tax from employee wages, regularly passing the amount to the ATO. |
| Record-keeping |
Employers are required to maintain comprehensive records relating to employee pay, taxes, superannuation and entitlements |
How can Workstem assist you?
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