Casual Loading Explained
Casual employees receive a 25% loading on top of the base hourly rate to compensate for the lack of paid leave entitlements (annual leave, personal leave) and the absence of guaranteed hours. Under the SCHADS Award, the loading is calculated on the permanent hourly rate for the same classification, and it interacts with penalty rates in a specific way that catches a lot of payroll teams out.
Quick Facts
- Loading Rate
- 25%
- Base Calculation
- Calculated on the permanent hourly rate
- Saturday (casual)
- 175% (cl.26.4(a))
- Sunday (casual)
- 225% (cl.26.4(b))
- Public Holiday (casual)
- 275% (cl.34.2(d))
- Overtime
- Casual loading generally not paid on Overtime hours
Tools & Resources
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Calculating the Rate
If the permanent rate is $30.00/hr:
Casual Loading = 25% of $30.00 = $7.50.
Total Casual Rate = $37.50/hr.
The loading compensates for the absence of paid leave and notice entitlements that permanent staff receive. It is not a discretionary uplift — it is mandatory under the Award for every hour worked by a casual.
Casual Loading = 25% of $30.00 = $7.50.
Total Casual Rate = $37.50/hr.
The loading compensates for the absence of paid leave and notice entitlements that permanent staff receive. It is not a discretionary uplift — it is mandatory under the Award for every hour worked by a casual.
Casuals and weekend penalties
Casual rates on weekends and public holidays are **inclusive of casual loading** — they do not stack on top of the permanent penalty rate the way some payroll systems assume. The SCHADS rates are:
- Saturday casual: 175% (150% Saturday rate + 25% casual loading) under cl.26.4(a)
- Sunday casual: 225% (200% Sunday rate + 25% casual loading) under cl.26.4(b)
- Public Holiday casual: 275% (250% PH rate + 25% casual loading) under cl.34.2(d)
Non-stacking rule
Penalty rates under the SCHADS Award do **not** compound. When multiple penalty triggers could apply, the higher rate applies — never the sum. Cl.26.2 says weekend rates are in substitution for cl.29 shift-loading premiums; cl.34.2(b) says the public-holiday penalty is in lieu of shift and weekend rates. A casual working a Saturday night shift therefore attracts the Saturday casual rate (175%), not 175% + the 15% night-shift loading. A casual working a public-holiday afternoon shift attracts 275%, not 275% + 12.5%. Allowances (broken shift, travel, on-call) are different — those stack on top of whatever penalty rate applies.
Casuals and overtime
For part-time and casual employees, overtime triggers under cl.28.1(b) at 38 hours per week (or 76 per fortnight), and separately when a single shift exceeds 10 hours on any day. Casual overtime rates are first 2 hours at 150% / 175%, then 200% / 225% thereafter. Sunday excess is paid at double time; public-holiday excess at double-and-a-half. The general payroll convention is that casual loading is not paid on top of overtime hours — overtime rates already cover the relevant premium — but check the specific rate tables in your pay guide because the wording on stacking has evolved over recent FWC variations.
When classification is missing or unknown
If the timesheet record doesn't include the employee's classification or employment type, payroll cannot reliably resolve the right rate. The most expensive payroll error in NDIS work is using the wrong classification level — it compounds across every hour and every penalty over years. Where employment type is absent, weekly ordinary hours above 50 are almost certainly a real overtime breach (no full-time SCHADS contract is 50h+ ordinary), but anything between 38–50 is genuinely ambiguous and should be flagged for verification rather than auto-defaulted to casual.
Casual vs part-time: the trade-off
Some providers try to avoid the 25% loading by classifying short-engagement workers as part-time. But part-time employees under the SCHADS Award have a guaranteed minimum number of hours per week and protected pattern of engagement. If you classify a worker as part-time and don't honour those minimums, you create a different compliance problem. Casual loading is the price of flexibility; converting a casual to part-time means committing to a roster pattern.
Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can casuals convert to permanent?
- Yes. Under the National Employment Standards, casual employees who have worked a regular pattern of hours for 6 months (in some awards) or 12 months may have the right to request casual conversion.
- Does the 25% casual loading stack with overtime?
- Generally no. The casual loading is built into the rate paid for ordinary hours. Once overtime is triggered, the overtime rate (150% first 2 hours, then 200%) applies — casuals receive 175% / 225% for the same hours, but the loading is treated as already included in the casual penalty rate, not added on top.
- What is the casual rate on a Saturday or Sunday under SCHADS?
- Casuals receive 175% on Saturdays and 225% on Sundays. Both rates include the 25% casual loading — they replace, not add to, the permanent weekend rate.
- Do casuals receive the broken shift allowance?
- Yes. The broken shift allowance is payable to casual employees on the same basis as full-time and part-time staff — clause 25.6 limits it by type of work (disability services and home care), not by employment type. The 25% loading does not cover it: the loading substitutes for entitlements casuals are excluded from (paid leave, notice), and the broken shift allowance is not one of those, so it is paid on top.
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