Disability Support Worker Pay Rates 2025-2026
Disability Support Workers (DSWs) form the backbone of the NDIS sector. Under the **SCHADS Award**, pay rates vary based on classification level, employment type (casual vs permanent), and the time of day worked.
Want to quickly check a specific rate? Use our free SCHADS GPT tool to ask about any clause.
Quick Facts
- Award Classification
- Usually Level 2 or Level 3 (Social & Community Services)
- Base Rate (Level 2.1)
- $33.28/hr (Casual) / $26.62/hr (Permanent) [Est. 2024-25]
- Weekend Rates
- 150% (Sat) / 200% (Sun)
- Public Holidays
- 250% (Double time and a half)
Tools & Resources
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SCHADS AI Assistant
Get instant answers to award questions.
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Timesheet Validator
Check timesheets for compliance.
Average Pay Rates for Support Workers
Most Disability Support Workers start at **Level 2** of the Social and Community Services stream.
Current Rates (Estimated for 2025/2026 financial year):
Note: Rates effectively updated July 1st annually. Ensure you validate your timesheets to catch any underpayments.
Current Rates (Estimated for 2025/2026 financial year):
- Level 2.1 Permanent: ~$26.62 per hour
- Level 2.1 Casual: ~$33.28 per hour (includes 25% loading)
- Level 3.1 Permanent: ~$27.90 per hour
Note: Rates effectively updated July 1st annually. Ensure you validate your timesheets to catch any underpayments.
Penalty Rates and Loadings
Support work often involves non-standard hours. The SCHADS Award provides significant penalty rates:
- Afternoon Shift: +12.5% loading
- Night Shift: +15% loading
- Saturday: 150% of base rate
- Sunday: 200% of base rate
- Public Holidays: 250% of base rate
How Penalty Rates Interact (Non-Stacking)
Penalty rates under SCHADS do not compound. When more than one penalty could apply to the same hour, the higher rate applies — not the sum. Clause 26.2 specifies that weekend rates substitute for the cl.29 shift premiums, and cl.34.2(b) specifies that the public holiday penalty applies in lieu of shift and weekend rates.
In practice this means:
In practice this means:
- A Saturday night shift attracts the 150% Saturday rate, not 150% plus the 15% night loading.
- A public holiday afternoon shift attracts 250%, not 250% plus 12.5%.
- If overtime falls on a Saturday, the worker is paid the higher of the overtime rate or the Saturday rate per hour — not both added together.
Worked Example: Saturday Shift Spanning Midnight
Consider a full-time Level 2 disability support worker (base rate $32.19/hr) who starts at 2pm Saturday and finishes at 1am Sunday — 11 hours in total.
- 2pm–12am Saturday (10 hours): Saturday rate = $32.19 × 150% = $48.29/hr.
- 12am–1am Sunday (1 hour): Sunday rate = $32.19 × 200% = $64.38/hr.
Common Compliance Mistakes
The most expensive payroll error in disability services is **wrong classification level**. A worker classified at Level 2 when they should be Level 3 is underpaid on every hour worked, every penalty rate, and every overtime hour — and it compounds over years. The most common misclassification: experienced support workers performing team leadership or program coordination duties while still being paid at the base support worker level. If the work matches a higher level descriptor in the award, the higher level applies regardless of what the employment contract says.
Other recurring errors:
Other recurring errors:
- Applying the public holiday rate to an entire shift that spans midnight, when only the hours actually falling on the public holiday attract 250%.
- Only triggering overtime after 38 weekly hours, missing the daily 10-hour threshold entirely — a worker doing a 12-hour Monday shift is owed 2 hours of overtime even if their weekly total is just 12 hours.
- Adding the night shift loading to the Saturday penalty (the non-stacking rule above).
Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
- What level is a Disability Support Worker under SCHADS?
- Most entry-level Disability Support Workers are classified as Social and Community Services Employee Level 2. Workers with a Certificate III or IV, or significant experience performing complex tasks, may be classified at Level 3.
- Do support workers get paid for travel time?
- Yes. Under the SCHADS Award, time spent traveling between clients is considered working time and must be paid. You are also entitled to a vehicle allowance (approx $0.96/km) if using your own car.
- Do SCHADS penalty rates stack on top of each other?
- No. Penalty rates do not compound. When multiple penalties could apply (e.g. Saturday plus overtime, or a public holiday plus a night shift loading), the higher single rate applies. Allowances such as broken shift and travel do stack on top of penalty rates.
- When does overtime kick in for a disability support worker?
- Under the SCHADS Award, overtime is triggered after 10 hours in a single day or after 38 ordinary hours in a week for full-time employees. The first 2 overtime hours are paid at 150%, with subsequent hours at 200%. For disability services and home care, the band is 2 hours at time-and-a-half then double time (cl.28.1(a)(i)).
- What is the casual loading under SCHADS?
- The casual loading is 25%, added on top of the applicable rate. Casuals receive 125% on weekdays, 175% on Saturdays, 225% on Sundays, and 275% on public holidays.
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