The SCHADS Award (Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award 2010, MA000100) sets the minimum pay and conditions for most disability support workers. From the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2026, level 2 pay point 1 is $36.22 an hour and $45.28 for a casual, with weekends and public holidays at 150% to 250%. Three changes run through this award cycle: sleepovers from 1 June 2026, up to 15% for home care disability employees from 1 December 2026, and a new classification structure from 1 October 2027.
The SCHADS Award 2026-27 at a glance
The figures people look up most, for the social and community services stream that covers most disability support work in group homes, SIL houses and day programs. Percentages are of the worker's ordinary hourly rate.
| What | 2026-27 | Where it is set |
|---|---|---|
| Level 2 pay point 1, ordinary hourly | $36.22 | Minimum wages, social and community services |
| Level 2 pay point 1, casual hourly | $45.28 | cl 10.4 (25% casual loading) |
| Afternoon shift loading | 112.5% | cl 29.3(a) |
| Night shift loading | 115% | cl 29.3(b) |
| Saturday and Sunday | 150% and 200% | cl 26.1 |
| Public holiday | 250% (casual 275%) | cl 34.2 |
| Sleepover allowance | $62.87 a night | cl 25.7(d) |
| Broken shift, one unpaid break | $21.81 | cl 20.12(a) |
| Broken shift, two unpaid breaks | $28.87 | cl 20.12(b) |
| Minimum paid time, disability services | 2 hours | cl 10.5 |
Who the SCHADS Award covers
Clause 4.1 covers employers in four sectors: crisis assistance and supported housing, social and community services, home care, and family day care. Disability support sits in two of them. The social and community services sector includes disability services, including personal care and domestic and lifestyle support, in a community or residential setting such as a respite centre or day service. The home care sector is personal care, domestic assistance or home maintenance for an aged person or a person with a disability in a private residence.
Many disability support workers in group homes, SIL houses and day programs are engaged as social and community services employees under Schedule B, and working in a private home does not on its own move someone off it. Which schedule fits depends on the work and how the worker is engaged, so check each classification against the award.
“This industry award covers employers throughout Australia in the: (a) crisis assistance and supported housing sector; (b) social and community services sector; (c) home care sector; (d) family day care scheme sector”
SCHADS Award cl 4.1
SCHADS pay rates by level, 2026-27
Social and community services stream, from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2026. The pay rates guide adds the evening, night, weekend and public holiday rate for every level and works out any shift.
| Level and pay point | Ordinary hourly | 38 hour week | Casual hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| Level 1, pay point 1 | $27.55 | $1,046.90 | $34.44 |
| Level 1, pay point 2 | $28.44 | $1,080.72 | $35.55 |
| Level 1, pay point 3 | $29.45 | $1,119.10 | $36.81 |
| Level 2, pay point 1 | $36.22 | $1,376.36 | $45.28 |
| Level 2, pay point 2 | $37.36 | $1,419.68 | $46.70 |
| Level 2, pay point 3 | $38.50 | $1,463.00 | $48.13 |
| Level 2, pay point 4 | $39.53 | $1,502.14 | $49.41 |
| Level 3, pay point 1 | $40.49 | $1,538.62 | $50.61 |
| Level 3, pay point 2 | $41.66 | $1,583.08 | $52.08 |
| Level 3, pay point 3 | $42.55 | $1,616.90 | $53.19 |
| Level 3, pay point 4 | $43.42 | $1,649.96 | $54.28 |
| Level 4, pay point 1 | $46.70 | $1,774.60 | $58.38 |
| Level 4, pay point 2 | $47.92 | $1,820.96 | $59.90 |
| Level 4, pay point 3 | $49.16 | $1,868.08 | $61.45 |
| Level 4, pay point 4 | $50.25 | $1,909.50 | $62.81 |
| Level 5, pay point 1 | $53.43 | $2,030.34 | $66.79 |
| Level 5, pay point 2 | $54.58 | $2,074.04 | $68.23 |
| Level 5, pay point 3 | $55.85 | $2,122.30 | $69.81 |
| Level 6, pay point 1 | $58.37 | $2,218.06 | $72.96 |
| Level 7, pay point 1 | $63.13 | $2,398.94 | $78.91 |
| Level 8, pay point 1 | $68.49 | $2,602.62 | $85.61 |
Sleepovers and broken shifts
A sleepover is a continuous 8 hour span at the client's premises. The worker gets the sleepover allowance of $62.87 a night, and any work they are asked to do during it is paid at the overtime rate with a one hour minimum. Since the first full pay period starting on or after 1 June 2026, the work either side of a sleepover is one shift, which can run to 12 hours by agreement.
In disability services work a broken shift can have one unpaid break, or two if the worker agrees. The allowance is $21.81 a shift with one unpaid break and $28.87 with two, and work beyond a 12 hour span is paid at double time. Casual and part-time workers are paid at least 2 hours for each period of work.
“This clause only applies to social and community services employees when undertaking disability services work and home care employees.”
SCHADS Award cl 25.6
What changed in 2026, and what comes next
Every change to award minimum wages takes effect from the start of each worker's first full pay period that starts on or after the operative date, not on the date itself (Fair Work Act s 166(5)).
| From the first full pay period on or after | Change | Who |
|---|---|---|
| 1 June 2026 | Work either side of a sleepover is one shift, up to 12 hours by agreement ([2026] FWCFB 79) | Workers who do sleepovers |
| 1 July 2026 | 2026-27 minimum rates and allowances | Every employee on the award |
| 1 December 2026 | Initial increase of up to 15% on the minimum award rate ([2026] FWCFB 232) | Home care employees who provide disability care (cl 17.1) |
| 1 October 2027 | New classification structure replaces Schedules B, C, E and F, with new minimum rates | Social and community services, crisis accommodation and home care employees |
Running payroll on the award
The rate is the easy part. The questions that cost money are about the shift: an evening finish that crosses 8 pm, a sleepover counted as a break, a broken shift with no allowance, a casual paid under the 2 hour minimum. Each is decided by when the shift starts and ends, so the roster is the place to catch it, before the pay run.
Parkways compares its SCHADS rates and allowances with the Fair Work Commission's Modern Awards Pay Database for MA000100 and reports any difference as a finding a person confirms. It never changes a worker's pay on its own.
SCHADS Award: straight answers
What is the SCHADS Award?
The Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award 2010 (MA000100). It is the modern award that sets minimum pay and conditions in the crisis assistance and supported housing, social and community services, home care and family day care sectors (cl 4.1), which take in most disability support workers.
What does a disability support worker earn under SCHADS in 2026-27?
It depends on the classification. Level 2 pay point 1, a common starting level for disability support workers in the social and community services stream, is $36.22 an hour ($1,376.36 for 38 hours) and $45.28 for a casual, from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2026.
Does the SCHADS Award cover NDIS support workers?
Usually, yes. Disability services work in a community or residential setting falls in the award's social and community services sector, and personal care or domestic help for a person with a disability in a private home falls in the home care sector. An enterprise agreement can replace the award for the workers it covers.
What is the SCHADS sleepover allowance in 2026-27?
$62.87 a night (cl 25.7(d)), the figure the Fair Work Commission's pay database carries from 1 July 2026.
When is the next SCHADS pay rise?
Home care employees who provide disability care get an initial increase of up to 15% from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 December 2026. Most other employees move to the new classification structure and its rates from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 October 2027.
Are these rates advice for one worker's pay?
No. They are the award minimums for each classification. A worker's actual pay depends on their classification, any agreement and any over-award terms, so check the Fair Work pay guide or ask the Fair Work Ombudsman.
Sources
Read from these editions on 14 November 2026. This guide explains the rules; it is not advice on one person's pay or one incident.
- Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award 2010 (MA000100), Fair Work Ombudsman consolidation to 1 September 2026 (PR813674)
- Fair Work Ombudsman, Changes to the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Award (published 21 September 2026)
- Fair Work Ombudsman, Changes to sleepovers in the SCHADS Award (published 7 May 2026, updated 1 June 2026), on the Fair Work Commission's decision [2026] FWCFB 79 and determination PR798459
- Fair Work Commission, Decision [2026] FWCFB 232 (11 September 2026), matter AM2024/21
- Fair Work Act 2009, Compilation No. 73 (7 July 2026), section 166