Australia’s retail sector employs around 1.3 million people – about 10% of the national workforce. Most of these workers are covered by the General Retail Industry Award, which sets their minimum wages and conditions. The general retail industry award 2020 (modern award MA000004) is the legal instrument outlining pay rates for retail employees across Australia. It is updated annually after Fair Work Commission reviews. Below, we explain what the General Retail Industry Award is, what it covers, and detail the updated pay rates for 2025.
What does the General Retail Industry Award cover?
The Retail Award covers employers and employees in the general retail industry, which broadly means retail businesses selling goods or services to consumers. This includes a wide range of retail stores and roles. For example, it covers:
- Retail businesses such as supermarkets, grocery stores, department stores, clothing, footwear and recreational goods stores. Essentially, any business engaged in the retail sale or hire of goods for personal, household or business use (e.g. food, clothing, furniture, homewares) falls under this award.
- Retail services that are part of a retail operation – for instance, in-store bakeries (baking goods on-site for sale), repair services for household equipment in a retail shop, or newspaper delivery by a newsagent.
- Retail employees in various roles, from checkout operators, sales assistants, shelf stackers and trolley collectors to senior roles like department managers and store managers. It also covers tradespeople working in retail (e.g. butchers or florists in a shop) and clerical staff in retail establishments.
In summary, if you work in a shop or store selling products to the public (other than specialised sectors like fast food or pharmacies which have their own awards), you’re likely covered by the General Retail Award. It sets the minimum pay rates, standard hours, breaks, penalty rates for evenings and weekends, overtime rules, and allowances for all these retail workers.
What are the General Retail Industry Award pay rates 2025?
Like most awards, the retail award’s minimum wages are reviewed and increased every year. The Fair Work Commission’s 2024–25 Annual Wage Review delivered a 3.5% increase to award minimum wages from 1 July 2025.
Adult
Full-time & part-time
|
Classification |
Weekly pay rate | Hourly pay rate |
|
Retail employee level 1 |
$1008.90 | $26.55 |
|
Retail employee level 2 |
$1032.00 | $27.16 |
|
Retail employee level 3 |
$1048.00 | $27.58 |
|
Retail employee level 4 |
$1068.40 |
$28.12 |
| Retail employee level 5 | $1112.30 |
$29.27 |
| Retail employee level 6 | $1128.50 |
$29.70 |
| Retail employee level 7 | $1185.10 |
$31.19 |
| Retail employee level 8 | $1233.20 |
$32.45 |
Casual
|
Classification |
Hourly pay rate |
|
Retail employee level 1 |
$33.19 |
|
Retail employee level 2 |
$33.95 |
|
Retail employee level 3 |
$34.48 |
|
Retail employee level 4 |
$35.15 |
| Retail employee level 5 |
$36.59 |
| Retail employee level 6 |
$37.13 |
| Retail employee level 7 |
$38.99 |
| Retail employee level 8 |
$40.56 |
Junior
|
Classification |
Weekly pay rate | Hourly pay rate | |||
|
Full-time & part-time – Under 16 years of age |
|||||
|
Retail employee level 1 |
$454.01 | $11.95 | |||
|
Retail employee level 2 |
$464.40 |
$12.22 |
|||
| Retail employee level 3 | $471.60 |
$12.41 |
|||
|
Full-time & part-time – 16 years of age |
|||||
|
Retail employee level 1 |
$504.45 | $13.28 | |||
|
Retail employee level 2 |
$516.00 |
$13.58 |
|||
| Retail employee level 3 | $524.00 |
$13.79 |
|||
|
Full-time & part-time – 17 years of age |
|||||
|
Retail employee level 1 |
$605.34 | $15.93 | |||
|
Retail employee level 2 |
$619.20 | $16.29 | |||
| Retail employee level 3 | $628.80 |
$16.55 |
|||
|
Full-time & part-time – 18 years of age |
|||||
|
Retail employee level 1 |
$706.23 | $18.59 | |||
|
Retail employee level 2 |
$722.40 | $19.01 | |||
| Retail employee level 3 | $733.60 |
$19.31 |
|||
|
Full-time & part-time – 19 years of age |
|||||
|
Retail employee level 1 |
$807.12 | $21.24 | |||
|
Retail employee level 2 |
$825.60 | $21.73 | |||
|
Retail employee level 3 |
$838.40 |
$22.06 | |||
|
Full-time & part-time – 20 years of age and employed by the employer for 6 months or less |
|||||
|
Retail employee level 1 |
$908.01 |
$23.09 |
|||
| Retail employee level 2 | $928.80 |
$23.62 |
|||
| Retail employee level 3 | $943.20 |
$23.98 |
|||
|
Full-time & part-time – 20 years of age and employed by the employer for more than 6 months |
|||||
|
Retail employee level 1 |
$1008.90 | $25.65 | |||
| Retail employee level 2 | $1032.00 |
$26.24 |
|||
|
Retail employee level 3 |
$1048.00 | $26.65 | |||
|
Casual – Under 16 years of age (Hourly pay rate) |
|||||
|
Retail employee level 1 |
$14.94 |
||||
|
Retail employee level 2 |
$15.28 |
||||
| Retail employee level 3 |
$15.51 |
||||
|
Casual – 16 years of age (Hourly pay rate) |
|||||
| Retail employee level 1 |
$16.60 |
||||
|
Retail employee level 2 |
$16.98 | ||||
| Retail employee level 3 |
$17.24 |
||||
|
Casual – 17 years of age (Hourly pay rate) |
|||||
|
Retail employee level 1 |
$19.91 | ||||
|
Retail employee level 2 |
$20.36 |
||||
| Retail employee level 3 |
$20.69 |
||||
|
Casual – 18 years of age (Hourly pay rate) |
|||||
|
Retail employee level 1 |
$23.24 |
||||
|
Retail employee level 2 |
$23.76 |
||||
| Retail employee level 3 |
$24.14 |
||||
|
Casual – 19 years of age (Hourly pay rate) |
|||||
| Retail employee level 1 |
$26.55 |
||||
|
Retail employee level 2 |
$27.16 | ||||
| Retail employee level 3 |
$27.58 |
||||
|
Casual – 20 years of age and employed by the employer for 6 months or less (Hourly pay rate) |
|||||
| Retail employee level 1 |
$29.88 |
||||
|
Retail employee level 2 |
$30.55 | ||||
| Retail employee level 3 |
$31.03 |
||||
|
Casual – 20 years of age and employed by the employer for more than 6 months (Hourly pay rate) |
|||||
|
Retail employee level 1 |
$33.19 |
||||
| Retail employee level 2 |
$33.95 |
||||
| Retail employee level 3 |
$34.48 |
||||
Apprentice
Junior Apprentice
|
Classification |
Hourly pay rate |
|
4 year apprenticeship – Started before 1 Jan 2014 |
|
|
Apprentice – 1st year |
$14.06 |
|
Apprentice – 2nd year |
$16.87 |
| Apprentice – 3rd year |
$22.49 |
| Apprentice – 4th year |
$25.30 |
|
4 year apprenticeship – Started after 1 Jan 2014 – Did not complete year 12 |
|
|
Apprentice – 1st year |
$14.06 |
|
Apprentice – 2nd year |
$16.87 |
| Apprentice – 3rd year |
$22.49 |
| Apprentice – 4th year |
$25.30 |
|
4 year apprenticeship – Started after 1 Jan 2014 – Completed year 12 |
|
|
Apprentice – 1st year |
$15.46 |
|
Apprentice – 2nd year |
$18.28 |
| Apprentice – 3rd year |
$22.49 |
| Apprentice – 4th year |
$25.30 |
|
3 year apprenticeship – Started before 1 Jan 2014 |
|
|
Apprentice – 1st year |
$14.06 |
|
Apprentice – 2nd year |
$16.87 |
| Apprentice – 3rd year |
$22.49 |
|
3 year apprenticeship – Started after 1 Jan 2014 – Did not complete year 12 |
|
|
Apprentice – 1st year |
$14.06 |
| Apprentice – 2nd year |
$16.87 |
| Apprentice – 3rd year |
$22.49 |
|
3 year apprenticeship – Started after 1 Jan 2014 – Completed year 12 |
|
|
Apprentice – 1st year |
$15.46 |
| Apprentice – 2nd year |
$18.28 |
| Apprentice – 3rd year |
$22.49 |
Adult apprentice
|
Classification |
Hourly pay rate |
|
4 year apprenticeship – Started before 1 Jan 2014 |
|
|
Apprentice – 1st year |
$14.06 |
|
Apprentice – 2nd year |
$16.87 |
| Apprentice – 3rd year |
$22.49 |
| Apprentice – 4th year |
$25.30 |
|
4 year apprenticeship – Started after 1 Jan 2014 |
|
|
Apprentice – 1st year |
$22.49 |
|
Apprentice – 2nd year |
$26.55 |
| Apprentice – 3rd year |
$26.55 |
| Apprentice – 4th year |
$26.55 |
|
3 year apprenticeship – Started before 1 Jan 2014 |
|
|
Apprentice – 1st year |
$14.06 |
| Apprentice – 2nd year |
$16.87 |
|
Apprentice – 3rd year |
$22.49 |
|
3 year apprenticeship – Started after 1 Jan 2014 |
|
|
Apprentice – 1st year |
$22.49 |
| Apprentice – 2nd year |
$26.55 |
| Apprentice – 3rd year |
$26.55 |
For full rates including Saturday, Sunday, overtime rates and allowances, please refer to: Pay Guide – General Retail Industry Award [MA000004]
General Retail Industry Award Rates 2024
The Fair Work Commission announced a big pay increase for millions of workers during its Annual Wage Review in June 2023.
From July 1, pay rates under the Retail Award rose by 5.75%.
For retail workers, this increase means adult Level 1 employees will earn an extra $1.34 per hour. This 5.75% increase applies to pay rates outlined in Enterprise Agreements and Awards that rely on the Annual Wage Review for wage adjustments.
Click here for a detailed table of pay increase in 2024.
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FAQs About the General Retail Industry Award
Q1: When did the 2025 General Retail Industry Award rates start?
A1: The updated rates started from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2025.
Q2: What is the casual loading under the Retail Award?
A2: Casual employees receive a 25% loading on top of their base hourly rate.
Q3: Are junior retail employees paid less under the award?
A3: Yes, junior employees (under 21) receive a percentage of the adult rate based on age.
Q4: Is the “General Retail Industry Award 2020” still current in 2025?
A4: Yes, it’s still current; “2020” refers to when the award was last consolidated, but it’s regularly updated.
Q5: How can I find the right pay rate for my retail job?
A5: Use the Fair Work Pay Calculator or official pay guides to confirm your exact classification and minimum rate.
Read More:
Updated Retail Award Rates 2024: What You Need to Know
General Retail Industry Award Guide [MA000004] 2023
Case Study 1: Revealing the Difference Between Woolworths’ EBA and Retail Award
When to Pay Overtime under the Retail Award: Triggers and Rates
