Compliance with the gardening award 2025 isn’t just a box to tick – it’s essential for avoiding legal troubles and keeping your workforce happy. The Gardening and Landscaping Services Award 2020 (MA000101) sets out minimum pay rates and conditions for your employees. Failing to follow it can lead to underpayment claims, hefty fines, and damage to your business’s reputation. In this guide, we’ll highlight the common compliance risks under MA000101 and how to address them. From paying the correct wages and penalty rates to keeping proper records, these solutions will help your landscaping or gardening services company stay on the right side of Fair Work regulations. Remember, compliance isn’t scary if you’re proactive and it’s definitely far better than the cost of getting it wrong!
Why Compliance with MA000101 Matters?
- Legal obligation: As an employer, you are legally required to provide at least the minimum pay rates, hours, leave, and other entitlements outlined in the Gardening and Landscaping Services Award 2020 award. Non-compliance is essentially breaking the law (Fair Work Act), which can result in enforcement action.
- Penalties and fines: The risks of not complying are serious. If the Fair Work Ombudsman finds you have underpaid employees or breached the award, you can face penalties per breach. For example, failing to pay proper overtime or allowances for multiple staff could be multiple breaches – fines can run into thousands of dollars each. In one case, a small landscaping business operator was penalised about $22,710 by the courts for underpaying workers and not following the award. Larger or wilful breaches can attract even higher fines. It’s not worth the risk.
- Back-pay orders: Beyond fines, you will be ordered to back-pay any underpayments to employees – potentially with interest. This can be a huge unexpected cost if issues went unnoticed for a long period. Employees can claim back-pay for up to 6 years in many cases. Getting it right the first time prevents costly lump sums later.
- Reputation and staff morale: Today’s employees are quite aware of their rights. If they suspect they’re underpaid, they may lodge a complaint or even share their experience publicly. Non-compliance can damage your reputation in the industry and make it harder to attract or retain good staff. On the flip side, being known as a fair and compliant employer (paying correctly and on time) boosts morale and trust.
In short, compliance matters not only to avoid legal trouble but to foster a positive workplace. It’s part of running a professional business. Now, let’s look at specific compliance pitfalls under the Award and how to solve them.
How to Mitigate Common Compliance Risks?
Running a gardening or landscaping business, you need to watch out for a few common award-related risks:
- Underpayment of Base Rates: This can happen if you’re not aware of the annual rate changes or if you classify a worker too low.
- Solution: Double-check each employee’s classification against their duties and experience – for example, don’t keep a qualified tradesperson at a Level 2 rate if they should be Level 4. Use the Fair Work pay guides to verify current rates.
- Not Paying Overtime/Penalties: A big compliance risk is forgetting to pay higher rates for overtime, early mornings, late finishes, Saturdays after noon, Sundays, or public holidays. Landscaping projects often start early or push through weekends, so this is crucial.
- Solution: Implement a system to track hours and flag when penalty rates apply. For instance, if a staff member works a 10-hour day or on a Sunday, ensure your timesheet or payroll software automatically applies the 150%, 200%, or appropriate rate. Educate your payroll person (if it’s not you) on the award rules, or invest in award interpretation software that handles it for you.
- Missed Allowances: Little things like tool allowances, travel reimbursements, or meal allowances can slip through the cracks, especially in a small business. But an employee who buys their own tools or drives their own ute for work has a right to those allowances.
- Solution: Go through the award’s allowance clause and make a checklist of which apply to your business. For each job role, consider: do they use personal tools or vehicle? Are they a first aider? Keep that checklist with your onboarding or payroll notes so you remember to pay or reimburse accordingly.
- Classification or Coverage Mistakes: Ensure that you have the correct award! Sometimes businesses mistakenly think another award might apply or they pay a “flat rate” without regard to the award. For example, trying to pay a flat $30/hour for all hours worked – this might underpay overtime.
- Solution: Confirm that MA000101 is the right award for your employees (most likely it is, if your primary business is landscaping or gardening services). Then, avoid flat rate arrangements unless you’ve done the math to ensure it’s above award for every scenario (or have an enterprise agreement in place). If you do use a higher flat hourly rate to simplify things, periodically compare it against what the award says (including overtime) to ensure no one is worse off.
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
- Real-time wage calculations and timesheet syncing
- 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.
Book a free demo with our payroll experts and experience how Workstem can streamline your payroll and workforce operations.
FAQs About the Gardening & Landscaping Services Award
Q1: What happens if I accidentally underpay an employee under the award?
A1: If you discover an underpayment (perhaps you realised you paid the wrong rate or missed overtime), the best course is to rectify it immediately. Fix mistakes as soon as you spot them.
Q2: How can I keep up with changes to the Gardening and Landscaping Services Award each year?
A2: Mark 1 July in your calendar as “Update wage rates” and also maybe mid-June as “Check Annual Wage Review outcome.” This ensures you won’t forget in the rush of business.
Q3: Can I pay a flat daily or hourly rate instead of worrying about different overtime rates?
A3: You can, but you must be very careful that the flat rate is high enough to compensate for all the award entitlements. This is often called an “all-in rate” or “better-off-overall” payment.
Read More：
Gardening and Landscaping Services Award Guide [MA000101]
Building & Construction Award [MA000020] 2025: Pay Rates & Rights
