What Is SCHADS? A Care Provider's Guide for Community Services Employees

The Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry (SCHADS) award establishes the minimum employment conditions for home caregivers and other workers in SCHADS industries.

The award covers minimum pay rates, dispute resolution processes, consultation rights over roster changes, employment types, employment termination processes, allowable expenses, hours of work, superannuation conditions, annual leave and more. It includes sectors such as crisis assistance and supported housing, highlighting the significance of proper classification and compliance for employers.

Community and residential settings are important environments for delivering services such as disability support, social work, and community development.

The SCHADS award is comprehensive. For example, SCHADS award pay rates specify the minimum wage caregiver pay rate based on:

• The time of day

• Day of the week

• Overtime duration and date

• The length of the break between shifts

• Contract type

• Work type, e.g. aged home care or home disability support

• Worker education level

• Worker award level

• And more

You can access the latest SCHADS award details (automatic PDF download) via FairWork.

The 9 SCHADS Award Levels for Home Care Staff

For home care, there are nine different SCHADS award pay points. These are divided into five separate levels:

• Level 1 — pay point 1

• Level 2 — pay point 1, pay point 2

• Level 3 — pay point 1, pay point 2

• Level 4 — pay point 1, pay point 2

• Level 5 — pay point 1, pay point 2

The higher the level, the higher the pay rate and the greater the employee’s responsibilities. Level one employees will fulfil basic home care tasks under significant supervision, while the highest-level employees will have management roles.

An employee can move up a higher pay point or level when certain conditions are met, such as demonstrating professional development. They may only move up to the next pay point once every 12 months.

Additionally, acquiring new or enhanced skills is a criterion for moving up a pay point.

Pay point progression requires satisfactory performance and compliance with the SCHADS Award conditions.

SCHADS Award Pay Rates in Practice: A Breakdown 

To demonstrate how SCHADS award pay rates work, let'’s look at an example.

Let’s say Anne is a level 3, pay point 1 carer providing at-home aged care. Anne’s standard minimum weekly pay is $1,144.20, while her hourly rate is $30.11, reflecting a typical 38- ordinary hours work week.

Employees working more than five hours are entitled to an unpaid meal break lasting between 30 and 60 minutes, with conditions for when this break becomes paid or qualifies for overtime pay if required to work during the break.

However, last week, Anne did an eight-hour shift on a Saturday, which has a SCHADS award pay rate of $45.17. She also did a four-hour overnight shift on Tuesday, which is compensated at $34.63. 

This means Anne worked:

• 26 hours at $30.11

• 8 hours at $45.17

• 4 hours at $34.16 

This adds up to an actual weekly pay of $1,280.86.

How Care Providers Can Stay Compliant with the SCHADS Award Pay Rates

SCHADS award compliance is a major issue for NDIS care providers, with the FairWork Ombudsman applying costly fines for common compliance issues. Employers must also consider reasonable business grounds when addressing casual and part-time employee requests for conversion to permanent roles or reviews of guaranteed hours.

Ensuring the correct SCHADS award pay rate can be challenging when there are so many award levels and pay conditions. However, these essential tips will help you avoid errors, pay your workers fairly and stay compliant.

#1 Roster with the SCHADS Award Pay Classifications in Mind

You’re not expected to memorise all the SCHADS award pay rates. However, you should stay aware of when the minimum award pay rate changes. 

For example, make sure you know if a broken shift requires extra pay (only when working beyond a 12-hour span), when overtime rates increase (after two hours) and the requirements for rostered days off (two full days per week, four full days per fortnight or eight full days per 28-day cycle), , and the structure of broken shifts that include one or more breaks, which are specifically allowed for social and community services employees working in home care and disability services.

Knowing this will help you build compliant and fully budgeted rosters. NDIS plan management software management tools like ShiftCare provide schedule filters so you can quickly see when staff are scheduled, how many hours they’re assigned and the types of shifts they’re working.

You’re not expected to memorise all the SCHADS award pay rates. However, you should stay aware of when the minimum pay rate changes.

#2 Move to Digital Timesheets & Shift Verification 

Manual timesheets are a major stumbling block for home care compliance. They are prone to errors and hard to verify. Records can be misplaced, a “7” can be misread as a “1” and an NDIS carer can accidentally write the wrong date.

NDIS support coordination software that has digital time-tracking tools offers a solution to shift rostering. You can set up geo-verification of shift start and end times, and your care staff can ask clients to digitally sign each shift report. You’ll have an infallible record — and since it’s stored digitally, it won’t get lost or have coffee spilled on it.

#3 Integrate Your Timesheets with Payroll

NDIS plan management software is key to SCHADS Award compliance. Once you’ve ensured accurate shift records, make sure your payroll is also correct by integrating it with your NDIS provider care management software. In this way, you’ll be able to auto-generate payroll on time and correctly. 

Easy SCHADS Award Compliance so You Can Relax

ShiftCare’s care management software helps you stay compliant, whether through monitoring your rostered hour limits, collecting clients’ digital signatures or avoiding payroll errors thanks to accurate shift records.

Discover how care management software can make staying compliant stress-free. Try ShiftCare for free.

1. What are the SCHADS Award Pay Rates, and how do they affect NDIS Providers?

The SCHADS Award Pay Rates define the minimum wages for workers in the Social, Community, Home Care, and Disability Services sectors. For NDIS Providers, understanding these pay levels is crucial for fair compensation of support workers and for ensuring compliance with NDIS requirements.

2. How can NDIS Providers manage shift rostering in line with SCHADS Award Pay Rates?

Effective shift rostering is key to managing costs while adhering to SCHADS Award Pay Rates. Using a carer app or NDIS plan management software like ShiftCare can help automate rostering, ensuring shifts align with pay levels and reducing administrative burdens.

3. How long does it take to become an NDIS provider, and how does SCHADS Award compliance fit in?

Becoming an NDIS provider typically takes several weeks to months, depending on various factors. During this process, it’s important to understand how to get NDIS clients and ensure compliance with SCHADS Award Rates to meet industry standards and attract quality support workers.