Paying employee’s correctly is crucial to your obligations as an employer both to your business and to your staff…
The construction industry can be quite complex when it comes to interpreting the awards, so taking the time to know which ones apply to you is important.
Here’s 3 main awards we see used regularly:
– Building and Construction General On-site Award [MA000020]
– Electrical, Electronic and Communications Contracting Award [MA000025]
– Plumbing and Fire Sprinklers Award [MA000036]
All three of these awards work on 38 (not 40) hours per week and provide penalty rates as well as allowances and loadings specific to this industry.
Loadings for example:
– Payments of overtime
– Annual Leave Loading (applied to all full time and part time employees)
Allowances include:
– Industry
– Special
– Leading Hand
– Tool
– Meals
– Fares and Travel
– Travel Time
– Kms inside radial area
– Kms outside radial area
– Multi-storey
–First Aid
– Wet Weather
Some of these allowances also have implications on super guarantee calculations.
These are just some of the additional allowances you may need to factor in when calculating your employee’s wages and additional payments. Keep in mind, there are many more allowances to consider depending on your site and working conditions
The mistake we often see is these considerations being missed by employers when calculating a flat loaded rate to pay their employees. Reading and understanding your awards can be daunting but ensuring you’re on top of them ensures both your business and employees are looked after. If you’re unsure what applies to you, seek advice directly from Fairwork or save time (and potential error) by engaging a professional to aid your business with all your HR needs!
