The FWC has issued the following draft determination for the SCHADS Award as part of its four-yearly Modern Award review of the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Award. These changes are proposed to commence in October 2021.
Clauses 10.5 and 25.6 will be amended as follows:
- Clause 10.5 – Part-time and casual social and community service workers (except disability workers) will be paid a minimum three hours. All other Part-time and casual workers will be paid a minimum two hours.
- Clause 25.6 – Broken shift will be a shift consisting of 2 separate periods of work with a single unpaid ‘break’ (other than a meal break) with a maximum of 2 unpaid ‘breaks’ by agreement for an additional allowance.
The FWC has also invited feedback on its provisional view that:
- workers should receive a broken shift allowance under clause 25.6 of 1.7% of their standard rate ($17.10 per broken shift) for one unpaid shift break, or 2.5% of their standard rate ($25.15 per broken shift) if there are two shift breaks.
- where a day worker (including part-time and casual employees) performs work outside of the ordinary span of hours (including as part of a period of work in a broken shift), the employee is entitled to overtime.
- clause 25.5(d)(ii) should be varied as follows:
(ii) However, a roster may be changed at any time: (A) if the change is proposed by an employee to accommodate an agreed shift swap with another employee; or (B) to enable the service of the organisation to be carried on where another employee is absent from duty on account of illness, or in an emergency.
- a new Award clause will be inserted for “remote response work” to respond to and monitor phone calls, messages and emails with employees to be paid a minimum half hour between 6am and 10pm and a minimum hour between 10pm and 6am.
- home care employees will only be required to work a 24-hour care shift by agreement and must have an opportunity to sleep for a continuous eight hour period, in a separate room with clean bedding, with the use of appropriate facilities and free board and lodging each night. These workers are to paid for eight hours work at 155% of their appropriate rate for each 24-hour period.
- employees should be reimbursed for cleaning or replacing clothing soiled or damaged in the course of their work.
Interested parties are invited to file submissions on the draft determination and provisional views by June 22 ahead of a June 30 hearing.
The bench will convene a conference to discuss the issue of travel time, remote response/recall to work, and clothing and equipment claims on May 27.
