From time to time at GSE we are asked to clear up the confusion as to which Pay Award a certain hospitality business should use. It can be a ‘grey’ area and one that if used incorrectly can cause problems down the track and can prove costly.
Pay grades vary for employees within each award and in some cases vary from state to state. If you’re in any doubt we recommend that you contact www.fairworkaustralia.com.au for clarification, however we have outlined our ‘general rule of thumb’ below:
Within our industry there are three main awards:
- Restaurant Industry Award
- Fast Food Industry Award
- Hospitality Industry (General) Award
Restaurant Industry Award:
This award covers businesses where the majority of the food and beverages sold are eaten on the premises and includes the following:
- Restaurants
- Cafes (where 51% or more of the food and beverages sold are eaten on the premises and/or offers table service)
- Reception Centres,
- Night Clubs
- Roadhouses
- Catering by a Restaurant business and a Tea Room operated in, or in connection with a Restaurant business * does not include a Restaurant operated in, or in connection with, premises owned or operated by an employer covered by any of the following awards:
For full details please follow the link: http://awardviewer.fwo.gov.au/award/show/MA000119#P136_9192
Fast Food Industry Award:
This award covers businesses where 51% or more of their income are take away orders.
To qualify for this award your business must adhere to the following:
- Food and beverages must be consumed away from the point of sale
- Food and beverages must be packaged in a way that customers can choose to take them somewhere else to consume
- Food and beverages sold in food courts, shopping centres and retail complexes
For full details please follow the link: https://www.fairwork.gov.au/awards-and-agreements/awards/award-summary/ma000003-summary
Hospitality Industry (General) Award:
This award covers the larger and more general hospitality sector and includes the following:
- Hotels
- Motor inns and Motels
- Boarding establishments
- Condominiums or similar
- Health or Recreational Farms
- Private Hotels, Guest Houses or Serviced Apartments
- Caravan Parks
- Ski Lodges
- Holiday flats
- Hostels or any other type of Residential or Tourist Accommodation
- Wine Bars or Taverns
- Liquor Booths
- Caterers
- Restaurants operating in, or in connection with premises owned or operated by employers otherwise covered by this award
- Casinos
- Function areas or convention or similar facilities operating in, or in connection with premises
For full details please follow the link: http://awardviewer.fwo.gov.au/award/show/MA000009
