Professional Employees Award
Covers five occupational streams: professional engineering, professional scientific, IT, telecommunications services, quality auditing (Schedule A), and professional medical research duties carried out at medical research institutes (Schedule B). 9 classifications: a five-pay-point Level 1 (1.1 split into 3yr / 4-5yr degree, then 1.2 / 1.3 / 1.4) plus L2-L4 (all streams) and L5 (medical research only - $111,756). Standard rate is L1 1.1 (3yr) at $63,795 annual. The award publishes ANNUAL minimums and uses a distinctive 313/6 hourly divisor (cl 14.2) - annual × 6/313 ÷ 38 ≈ annual ÷ 1982.33hrs. Two highly distinctive features: (1) overtime is paid at the MINIMUM HOURLY RATE with NO premium (cl 18.2(a)) - almost unique among modern awards; (2) employees on contractual salaries ≥25% above the classification minimum are EXEMPT from OT, TOIL, penalty rates AND record-keeping (cl 18.6). Penalty rates only exist from 16 Sep 2023 (PR760322).
Fully built. Rates, allowances, penalties and any required apprentice / junior rates are all wired to the rate resolver and have been verified against the consolidated award text and the latest pay guide.
What's built
- All 9 cl. 14.1 classifications at FWC AWR 2024-25 figures (PR786603 ppc 1Jul25): L1 1.1 (3yr) $63,795 → L5 $111,756 annual.
- Standard rate config = annual $63,795 + hourly $32.18 with the 313/6 divisor formula (cl. 14.2) and 52.1667 weeks/year reference exposed on AwardConfiguration.
- Cl. 16 allowances: vehicle $0.98/km (CPI Private motoring sub-group, cl. 16.5), travelling expenses reimbursement (cl. 16.2), equipment & special clothing provided free (cl. 16.4).
- Cl. 18.4 penalty rates correctly modelled with FT/PT vs Casual rows: Mon-Sat <6am or >10pm = 125% (FT/PT) / 150% (Casual); Sun any time = 150% / 175%; PH any time = 150% / 175%. Saturday daytime 06:00-22:00 carries NO penalty (D15).
- Cl. 18.2(a) OT: rule rates at 1.0x for ALL pay conditions - no OT premium (D4). FT hours over 38/wk paid at minimum hourly; PT and Casual likewise per cl. 10.2 / 11.1 + cl. 18.2 NOTE.
- 4 pay conditions: Full-Time / Part-Time / Casual / **Exempt - High Salary (cl 18.6)**. The exempt condition has all-day rules at 1.0x and no penalty/OT entitlement (D7).
- Casual minimum engagement = 2 consecutive hours (cl. 11.2 - D10), shorter than most awards.
- All 3 default super funds per cl. 17.4 (substituted by PR794759 ppc 23 Jan 2026): AustralianSuper, CareSuper, HOSTPLUS Superannuation Fund.
- AL loading 17.5% with the cl. 19.2(a) ABS-AWE cap reference exposed; 7-day shiftworker (cl. 19.3) gets 5 weeks AL + 10-week excessive accrual threshold via advanced rule (D14).
- Cl. 13.2 13-week ordinary hours averaging captured as an inactive advanced rule (D8) for individual-agreement activation.
- Coverage carve-outs (cl. 4.2) listed: Airport, Black Coal Mining, Electrical Power, Nurses, Port Authorities, Rail, State Government Agencies, Water Industry awards.
Known limitations
- Cl. 18.6 high-salary exemption requires runtime comparison of contractual annual salary against the current classification minimum × 1.25. Detector rule is inactive by default - payroll/HR onboarding must trigger condition switch when the threshold is crossed.
- AL loading ABS-AWE cap (cl. 19.2(a) - D9) needs the current published ABS Cat 6302.0 Average Weekly Earnings (All Males, Australia, September quarter) figure per business; payroll applies cap at leave-payment time. Sep-2024 quarter ≈ AUD 2,007.50/wk (verify).
- 13-week averaging period (cl. 13.2) is an arrangement flag - no schema field for the agreed averaging window per employee. Pay condition description references the option only; per-employee agreements need a separate table.
- Penalty rates pre-16 Sep 2023 did not exist (PR760322 inserted them). Historical timesheet replay before that date must retire all penalty rules.
Setup & special instructions
- Standard rate is ANNUAL ($63,795 for L1 1.1 / 3yr), not weekly. Use the 313/6 divisor (cl. 14.2): hourly = (annual × 6/313) ÷ 38; weekly = annual ÷ 52.1667. The standard ÷52 multiplier produces the wrong figure.
- OT is paid at the MINIMUM HOURLY RATE - NO premium (cl. 18.2(a)). Do not apply 150% / 200% OT multipliers; this award is unusual.
- Employees on contractual salaries ≥25% above the classification minimum are EXEMPT from OT, TOIL, penalty rates AND record-keeping (cl. 18.6). Switch them to the **Exempt - High Salary (cl 18.6)** pay condition; do NOT apply Full-Time/Part-Time/Casual rules.
- Casual penalty rates are FT/PT penalty + 25% additive (cl. 18.4 NOTE 1) - Sun & PH casual = 175% (not 150% × 1.25 = 187.5%).
- Saturday during 06:00-22:00 is ORDINARY rate (no penalty). Penalty only applies before 6am or after 10pm.
- Casual minimum engagement = 2 consecutive hours (cl. 11.2) - shorter than most awards. Do not default to 3-4 hrs.
- 7-day shiftworkers (regularly rostered Sun + PH per cl. 19.3) get 5 weeks AL - flag at hire.
- Schedule B Level 5 ($111,756) is MEDICAL RESEARCH ONLY - do NOT assign to Schedule A streams (engineers, scientists, IT, telecoms, quality auditors).
- IFAs may vary OT, penalty rates, allowances AND AL loading (cl. 5.1) - wider than most awards but BOOT applies.
- • Engineering
- • Professional engineering
- • IT
- • Information technology
- • Telecommunications
- • Quality auditing
- • Scientific
- • Medical research
- • Research institutes
- • Professional services
The consolidated award text is the authoritative source. Always confirm specific obligations against the award itself - Mployr's implementation status reflects what we've seeded; it does not replace legal advice.
Want to see this award running on your data?
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