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Table of content
- What is the Road Transport and Distribution Award?
- Who is entitled to the Road Transport and Distribution Award?
- How are the working hours arranged in the Road Transport and Distribution Award ?
- How are wages and allowances calculated in the Road Transport and Distribution Award?
- How is the leave managed in the Road Transport and Distribution Award?
- How can Workstem assist you?
This article provides guidelines on the road transport and distribution award package. For more information on this award, please refer to the road transport and distribution award[MA000038].
What is the Road Transport and Distribution Award?
The Road Transport and Distribution Award, is a set of legal minimum employment standards and conditions that apply to employees working in the road transport and distribution industry in Australia.
The award sets out the minimum wage rates, working hours, overtime, annual leave, sick leave, and other entitlements for employees working in various roles within the road transport and distribution industry, such as driver’s assistants, truck, forklift, concrete mixer and crane drivers. The award is designed to ensure that employees in the road transport and distribution industry are treated fairly and receive reasonable pay and conditions for their work.
Who is entitled to the Road Transport and Distribution Award?
Coverage
The road transport and distribution industry includes:
- transporting by road livestock, goods, wares, merchandise, materials or other things in any form (defined below)
- receiving, handling or storing goods, wares, merchandise, materials or other things in any form at a distribution facility
- storing and distributing livestock, goods, wares, merchandise, materials or other things in any form, in connection with air freight forwarding and customs clearance
- mobile food vending
- distributing and relocating new or used vehicles requiring the driving of the vehicle itself (applies from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2018).
‘In any form’ means in a raw or natural state, wholly or partly manufactured, or as a solid, liquid or gas.
‘Goods, wares, merchandise and any other things’ includes:
- crude oil
- gas condensate
- petrol and petroleum products
- dairy products
- wholesale meat
- quarried materials.
Employers and employees in the following industries or activities are not covered by the Road Transport Award:
- chauffeuring
- long distance driving (eg. interstate driving), if this is the principal or usual activity.
The Road Transport Award doesn’t cover employers and employees when they are covered by one of the following awards:
- Mining Award
- Road Transport (Long Distance) Award (while doing long distance work)
- Transport (Cash) Award
- Waste Award.
Types of employment
An employee covered by this award must be one of the following:
- A full-time employee who is engaged to work an average of 38 ordinary hours per week over a period of no more than 4 weeks.
- A part-time employee who is engaged to work less than 38 ordinary hours per week and has predictable hours. A part-time employee must receive a minimum payment of 4 hours for each day they are engaged.
- A casual employee who is engaged to work may be no more than 38 ordinary hours per week; or if they work according to a roster, their ordinary hours may be averaged over the roster cycle to be no more than 38 hours per week. For each ordinary hour worked, a casual employee must be paid the ordinary hourly rate; and a loading of 25% of the ordinary hourly rate,
How are the working hours arranged in the Road Transport and Distribution Award ?
Ordinary hours of work and roster cycles
|
Employees other than oil distribution workers |
Oil distribution workers |
| between 5.30 am and 6.30 pm. |
between 6.30 am and 5.30 pm, Monday to Friday. |
Shiftwork
Shiftwork means work extending for at least 2 weeks and performed either in daily recurrent periods, wholly or partly between the hours of 6.30 pm and 8.30 am or in regular rotating periods but does not include work performed by day workers.
|
Afternoon shift |
finishing after 6.30 pm but not later than 12.30 am |
|
Day shift |
starting at 5.30 am or later, but finishing at or before 6.30 pm |
| Night shift |
finishing after 12.30 am but not later than 8.30 am |
| Rostered shift |
employee concerned has received at least 48 hours’ notice |
Shiftwork hours and shift rosters
The hours of work of employees performing shiftwork must be an average of 38 per week. The ordinary hours of work must not exceed 8 continuous hours per day (inclusive of meal breaks) on one of the following bases:
- 38 hours within a work cycle not exceeding 7 consecutive days;
- 76 hours within a work cycle not exceeding 14 consecutive days;
- 114 hours within a work cycle not exceeding 21 consecutive days; or
- 152 hours within a work cycle not exceeding 28 consecutive days.
Breaks
|
Regular meal break: |
|
|
Meal and rest breaks after ordinary hours and before overtime hours: |
|
How are wages and allowances calculated in the Road Transport and Distribution Award?
Overtime
| % of minimum hourly rate | |
|
First 2 hours |
150% |
|
After 2 hours |
200% |
| Rest period after overtime |
200% |
| Time off instead of payment for overtime |
150% |
Shiftwork rates
- Shift rates
|
Shift |
% of the ordinary hourly rate |
| Afternoon shift |
117.5% |
| Night shift |
130% |
- Work on Saturdays, Sundays or public holidays
|
Shift |
Penalty rate | Casual penalty rate |
|
|
% of ordinary hourly rate | |
|
Saturday |
150% |
175% |
| Sunday | 200% |
225% |
| Public holidays | 250% |
275% |
Penalty rates
| % of the ordinary hourly rate | ||
| Full-time or part-time employee |
Casual employees |
|
|
Between midnight on Friday and midnight on Saturday |
150% | 150% |
|
Between midnight on Saturday and midnight on Sunday |
200% |
200% |
| Good Friday and Christmas Day | 200% |
300% |
| Public holiday other than Good Friday and Christmas Day | 150% |
250% |
Allowance
Road Transport and Distribution Award offers the following allowances:
|
Allowances |
Rate |
|
Carbon black allowance |
$2.63 per day |
|
Carting tar allowance |
$0.11 per hour up to a maximum of $4.23 per week |
|
Coffin handling allowance |
$3.57 for each coffin handled |
|
Dangerous goods allowance |
bulk goods: $22.28 per day
packaged goods: $9.31 per day |
| Dangerous goods license – training and medical reimbursement | reimbursement of training and medical costs |
|
Dirty material allowance |
$0.56 per hour |
|
Driver-salesperson allowance |
$0.54 per hour up to a maximum of $20.59 per week |
|
First aid allowance |
$0.40 per hour up to a maximum of $15.04 per week |
|
First aid course reimbursement |
reimbursement of fees for courses necessary to obtain and maintain a first aid qualification |
|
Furniture carter allowance |
$0.64 per hour up to a maximum of $24.35 per week |
|
Garbage collecting vehicle allowance |
$0.59 per hour up to a maximum of $22.47 per week |
|
Leading hand allowance |
|
|
Livestock carter allowance |
$0.64 per hour up to a maximum of $24.35 per week |
|
Meal allowance |
$18.59 per meal |
|
Medical checks reimbursement |
reimbursement of all medical costs not recoverable from a health fund |
|
Money handling allowance |
|
|
Offensive material allowance |
$3.38 per day |
|
Overalls reimbursement |
reimbursement for the cost of purchasing overalls |
|
Protective clothing reimbursement |
reimbursement for the cost of purchasing the required protective clothing |
|
Sanitary vehicle allowance |
$0.72 per hour up to a maximum of $27.45 per week |
|
Special clothing reimbursement |
reimbursement for the cost of purchasing the required special clothing |
|
Traveling allowance |
payment for reasonably incurred traveling expenses of at least $38.71 per day |
|
Vehicle allowance |
|
|
Work diary reimbursement |
reimbursement for the cost of a work diary |
| Working overtime – transport reimbursement -reasonable means of transport unavailable |
reimbursement for the cost of getting transport home or the appropriate overtime rate for time reasonably spent getting home |
How is the leave managed in the Road Transport and Distribution Award?
In the road transport and distribution award, leave entitlements for employees are determined by the National Employment Standards (NES) and the classification of the employee.
Annual leave
All annual leave is per the National Employment Standards NES. Employees are entitled to 4 weeks paid leave per year, plus an additional week for some shift workers.
Annual leave loading
During a period of annual leave an employee will receive a loading calculated on the minimum wage rate in clause 17—Minimum rates. Annual leave loading is payable on annual leave accrued and taken and on annual leave paid out on termination.
The loading is as follows:
- Day work
Employees who would have worked on day work only had they not been on annual leave—17.5% or the relevant weekend penalty rates, whichever is the greater, but not both.
- Shiftwork
Employees who would have worked on shiftwork had they not been on annual leave—a loading of 17.5% or the shift loading (including relevant weekend penalty rates), whichever is the greater, but not both.
Public holidays
The National Employment Standards (NES) provide entitlements for public holidays.
Substitution of certain public holidays by agreement at the enterprise
- An employer and employee may agree to substitute another day for a day that would otherwise be a public holiday under the NES.
- An employer and employee may agree to substitute another part-day for a part-day that would otherwise be a part-day public holiday under the NES.
How can Workstem assist you?
Workstem is a one-stop payroll & HR platform with an award interpretation module and customised attendance formulas that ensure aged cared employers stay compliant with Fair Work regulations. The platform simplifies HR processes, reduces administrative burdens, and offers a user-friendly interface for small businesses and large enterprises alike.
Experience the benefits of Workstem for yourself!
