Restaurant Industry Award Pay Guide: A Complete Overview

The main award most Australian restaurants, dine-in cafés, reception centres, tea rooms, night clubs and some sit-down roadhouses use is the Restaurant Industry Award 2020 [MA000119]. The current Fair Work pay guide for this award applies from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2025. This guide covers the award structure, who it applies to, classifications, minimum pay rates, junior rates, casual loading, penalties, overtime, breaks, allowances, leave, super and key compliance points.

What Is the Restaurant Industry Award?

The Restaurant Industry Award is a legal framework in Australia that sets minimum pay rates and working conditions for many restaurant employees.

It covers more than just hourly pay. It also includes rules for penalties, overtime, casual loading, breaks, allowances and job classifications.

If a business is covered by this award, it must follow these minimum standards. It cannot pay less or ignore the conditions, even if an employee agrees.

Not all food businesses fall under this award. Some may be covered by the Fast Food or Hospitality Award, so confirming the correct award is the first step.

What the Restaurant Award covers

The Restaurant Award covers employers in the restaurant industry and employees who fit the award classifications. This includes businesses mainly selling food and beverages to be eaten on the premises, including restaurants, restaurant catering, many eat-in cafés, reception centres, tea rooms, night clubs and some roadhouses that mainly provide sit-down service as a separate business. Typical covered roles include wait staff, baristas in mainly eat-in cafés, kitchen hands, cooks, chefs, office staff, security and storeroom staff. Labour hire employees placed into restaurant businesses can also be covered.

It does not automatically cover every food business. Some businesses and employees may instead fall under the Hospitality Award, Registered Clubs Award or Fast Food Award, depending on the real nature of the business and work being done. That is one of the biggest compliance traps in hospitality payroll.

The first thing to get right: award coverage

Before looking at pay rates, an employer has to confirm the correct award. A restaurant that mainly provides dine-in food and beverage service will often be under the Restaurant Award. A fast food outlet with a different operating model may fall under the Fast Food Award. A pub, hotel or some broader hospitality venue may instead fall under the Hospitality Award. Using the wrong award can make every pay calculation wrong even when the hourly figure looks reasonable.

Types of employment under the Restaurant Award

Under this award, an employee must be engaged as full-time, part-time or casual. At the time of engagement, the employer must tell the employee which type applies.

Full-time employees

A full-time employee under this award is engaged to work an average of 38 ordinary hours per week over a period of no more than 4 weeks.

Part-time employees

A part-time employee is engaged to work at least 8 ordinary hours per week and fewer than 38, or an average of at least 8 and fewer than 38 over the roster cycle, and must have reasonably predictable hours. The employer and employee must agree in writing on the guaranteed hours and the days and times the employee is available to work those guaranteed hours. Changes to guaranteed hours need written consent.

Part-time employees also have some specific rostering protections. They must not be rostered outside their written availability, they must not be rostered for fewer than 3 hours or more than 11.5 hours in a day, and they must have 2 days off each week. If they regularly work above their guaranteed hours for at least 12 months, they can request an increase to match that regular pattern.

Casual employees

Casual employees receive a 25% casual loading on top of the minimum hourly rate otherwise applicable under the award. They can be engaged for up to 12 hours in a day or shift and up to 38 hours per week on average over a roster cycle of up to 4 weeks. They must be engaged and paid for at least 2 consecutive hours on each occasion they attend work.

Casual status depends on whether there is a firm advance commitment to ongoing work, considering the real substance and practical reality of the relationship, not just the label used in the contract.

Adult minimum pay rates under the Restaurant Award

The current adult minimum rates below reflect the rates applying from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2025.

Full-time and part-time base rates

These are the base adult minimum rates before overtime, weekend penalties, public holiday rates and most allowances.

Casual base hourly rates

Because casual loading is 25%, the ordinary casual base rates work out to the following:

These are derived from the award minimum hourly rates plus the 25% casual loading.

What each level generally means

The award classification structure matters just as much as the raw pay rate because underpayment often comes from classifying someone too low.

Introductory level

This is only for a new entrant to the industry who does not yet meet Level 1 competency requirements. The employee remains at Introductory level for up to 3 months, unless both employer and employee agree that up to a further 3 months of training is needed. It is not meant to be a permanent low-paid level.

Food and beverage stream

The progression broadly works like this: grade 1 includes very basic support duties such as picking up glasses and clearing plates, grade 2 includes general waiting duties, taking reservations, greeting and seating guests and receipt of monies, grade 3 requires the appropriate level of training, grade 4 is a tradesperson level, and supervisor level involves supervisory responsibility.

Kitchen stream

The kitchen stream generally moves from kitchen attendants and lower cook grades into tradesperson cook levels. Cook grade 3 is the tradesperson level often aligned with a completed apprenticeship or equivalent trade test or training, while higher cook grades involve more specialised duties, stock control and supervision.

Junior pay rates

Junior rates apply by age unless a special rule makes the adult rate apply. Juniors are paid the following percentage of the relevant adult minimum rate:

Junior percentages

• Under 17: 50%
• 17 years old: 60%
• 18 years old: 70%
• 19 years old: 85%
• 20 years old: 100%

A very important restaurant rule is that juniors working as liquor service employees must be paid as adults for the classification of the work they are doing. Juniors who sell or serve alcohol, including as part of general waiting duties, must receive the adult rate for their classification regardless of age.

Ordinary hours and rostering rules

The award has detailed rules for how ordinary hours can be arranged. For full-time employees, ordinary hours must be structured so that the minimum ordinary hours on any day is 6 hours and the maximum is 11.5 hours, excluding meal breaks. If the break is not given on time Under Clause 16.5 and 16.6 of the Award, if an employer does not allow an employee to take their unpaid meal break, a penalty of an extra 50% of the ordinary hourly rate applies. The timing for this penalty is strict:

• If there is a rostered break time: The 50% penalty starts from the moment the break was supposed to begin.
• If there is no rostered break time: The 50% penalty starts after 6 hours of work (or 6.5 hours if a written facilitation agreement is in place). This penalty continues until the employee is finally allowed to take the break or the shift ends.

The award also says that if an employee is rostered to work more than 10 ordinary hours on more than 3 consecutive days, they are entitled to a break of at least 48 hours after the last such day. The maximum number of days above 10 ordinary hours in a 4-week cycle is 8. For split shifts, the maximum spread of hours is 12.

These roster rules matter because once a roster goes outside the award rules, overtime can start to apply even when the total weekly hours do not look extreme.

Breaks under the Restaurant Award

Break entitlements are another area where restaurants often get caught.

For shifts of 5 to 10 hours

An employee who works 5 hours or more and up to 10 hours is entitled to an unpaid meal break of at least 30 minutes. It must be taken after the first hour of work and within the first 6 hours, unless a valid facilitation agreement applies. If the employee is rostered to take that unpaid meal break later than 5 hours after starting work, they also get one additional 20-minute paid meal break.

For shifts of more than 10 hours

An employee working more than 10 hours gets the same unpaid meal break and, if the meal break is rostered later than 5 hours after starting, the same additional 20-minute paid meal break, plus 2 additional 20-minute paid rest breaks.

If the break is not given on time

If an employer does not allow the employee to take the unpaid meal break at the rostered time, the employer must pay an extra 50% of the ordinary hourly rate from when the break should have been taken until the break is actually given or the shift ends. If there is no rostered time for the break, the extra 50% applies from the end of 6 hours, or 6.5 hours if there is a facilitation agreement.

Extra breaks after long work

If an employee works more than 5 continuous hours after an unpaid meal break, they must get an additional 20-minute paid rest break. If they work more than 2 hours of overtime after finishing rostered hours, they must get another 20-minute paid rest break.

Penalty rates

The award penalty structure distinguishes between ordinary hours worked at certain times and overtime. Penalties apply to ordinary hours worked at certain times or on certain days. They do not stack with each other. If more than one penalty could apply, the employer pays the higher one only, except the meal-break penalty can apply in addition.

Full-time and part-time penalty rates

For full-time and part-time employees, ordinary hours attract these rates:

Casual penalty rates

For casual employees, the award uses higher all-inclusive percentages:

Public holiday minimum engagement

If a full-time or part-time employee works on a public holiday, they are entitled to a minimum of 4 hours’ pay. If a casual works on a public holiday, they are entitled to a minimum of 2 hours’ pay.

Alternative public holiday arrangement

The award allows an employer and employee to agree on an alternative to the standard 225% public holiday rate for full-time and part-time employees. Instead of 225%, the employee can be paid 125% for the public holiday hours worked and be given equivalent paid time added to annual leave or a day off in the same week or within 28 days.

Christmas Day on a weekend

Where Christmas Day falls on a weekend and is not a public holiday, the employer must pay a full-time or part-time employee 125% for hours worked and also allow a substitute day off.

Overtime rates

Overtime applies in a range of situations, including when employees work outside award ordinary-hour limits, outside rostered hours, or beyond the part-time or casual thresholds set by the award.

Overtime rate table

When part-time employees get overtime

Part-time employees must be paid overtime when they work in excess of 38 hours per week on average over the roster cycle, more than the daily limits, or more than their rostered hours.

When casual employees get overtime

Casual employees get overtime when they work more than 12 hours in a day or shift or more than an average of 38 hours over a roster cycle of up to 4 weeks.

Minimum pay on a rostered day off

If an employee is required to work on a rostered day off, they are entitled to a minimum of 4 hours’ pay, unless that work is part of or continuous on from a normal roster that started the previous day.

Break after overtime

If an employee works overtime and is next rostered to start work less than 8 hours after finishing that overtime, they may delay the start of the next rostered shift until they have had 8 hours off, without losing pay for the ordinary rostered hours missed. If they do not get the 8-hour break, the employer must continue paying at overtime rates until they do.

Allowances

The Restaurant Award includes monetary allowances. Two of the most common are the meal allowance and split shift allowance.

Meal allowance

An employer must provide a meal or pay a $16.73 meal allowance if the employee is required to work overtime for more than 2 hours without being told on or before the previous day. The same $16.73 can also apply where the employee was told earlier, provided their own meal, and then the overtime does not proceed or reduces to 2 hours or less.

Split shift allowance

For full-time and part-time employees who have a broken working day, the employer must pay a $5.34 split shift allowance for each separate work period of 2 hours or more.

Tool and equipment allowance

A cook or apprentice cook who is required to provide and use their own tools must be paid a daily tool and equipment allowance of $2.03 per day or part day, up to a maximum of $9.94 per week, unless they already receive a tool allowance.

Pay frequency and payslips

Wages must be paid weekly or fortnightly, on any day except Friday, Saturday or Sunday. If employees agree, wages can be paid monthly. Casuals must generally be paid at the end of each engagement unless they agree to weekly or fortnightly pay.

Employees must also receive a pay slip within 1 working day of being paid, and employers must keep accurate and complete records. Employee records must be kept for 7 years.

Leave entitlements

The Restaurant Award works together with the National Employment Standards (NES). Awards and contracts cannot undercut the NES.

Annual leave

All employees except casuals get paid annual leave under the NES. The Restaurant Award adds a 17.5% annual leave loading on the amount payable for paid annual leave, including untaken annual leave on termination. Some 7-day shiftworkers can qualify for an additional week of annual leave.

Personal, carer’s and other NES leave

The NES includes annual leave, personal/carer’s leave, compassionate leave, family and domestic violence leave, community service leave, parental leave, public holidays, superannuation contributions, notice of termination and redundancy pay. Casual employees only receive some NES entitlements, not the full permanent leave package.

Casual leave position

Casual employees do not get paid annual leave or paid sick/carer’s leave, though they can access some unpaid leave entitlements and other NES rights.

Superannuation

As of 1 July 2025, the Super Guarantee (SG) rate is 12%. It is important to note that according to the ATO, super is calculated on Ordinary Time Earnings (OTE), not necessarily the total gross pay.

• What is OTE? This includes base wages, shift loadings, and weekend/public holiday penalties.
• What is excluded? Generally, overtime payments (hours worked outside the ordinary span or rostered hours) are not considered OTE, meaning employers are typically not required to pay the 12% super on the overtime portion of an employee's pay.

Annualised wage arrangements

Restaurants often pay salaried chefs or supervisors on annual packages, but the award has very specific rules. Annualised wage arrangements can be used under the Restaurant Award, but only for full-time employees, and only if the employee agrees. The arrangement must be in writing, there are outer limits on what hours can be covered, records of start times, finish times and unpaid breaks must be kept, and the employer must do a reconciliation at least every 12 months or on termination. Any shortfall must be paid within 14 days.

The annualised wage must be at least 25% above the employee’s weekly minimum award wage. Even then, it does not let an employer pay less than the employee would otherwise receive under the award.

Common payroll mistakes in restaurants

Using the wrong award

A café, restaurant, takeaway, bar and hotel can each sit under different awards depending on how the business actually operates. The wrong award means the wrong rates, wrong penalties and wrong breaks.

Underclassifying staff

Calling someone a Level 2 waiter when they perform Level 3 or supervisory work is a classic underpayment issue. The classification has to match the real duties and training level, not just the job title used in the business.

Forgetting junior alcohol rules

A junior serving alcohol cannot just be left on a junior percentage. If they are a liquor service employee, they must be paid at the adult rate for the work performed.

Missing break penalties

Some employers think giving the break late fixes the issue. Under this award, if the break is not provided at the required time, an extra 50% of the ordinary hourly rate can apply until the break is actually taken or the shift ends.

Treating a salary as automatically compliant

A flat salary or annual package is not automatically lawful. If it does not meet the annualised wage rules or it fails the reconciliation, the employer can still owe back pay.

Poor record keeping

Employers must keep accurate records and payslips, and records must be kept for 7 years. Poor records also shift risk onto the employer in disputes about underpayment.

Calculating Super on Overtime: 

Many businesses overpay or under-calculate super by not distinguishing between Ordinary Time Earnings (which require super) and Overtime (which generally do not). Ensuring your payroll software correctly categorises "Shift Penalties" vs "Overtime" is essential for ATO compliance.

Practical checklist for restaurant owners and managers

At hiring stage

Confirm the correct award first. Then set the employment type clearly, classify the employee correctly, and issue the required information statements for new employees and casuals.

When rostering

Check the daily maximums, minimum engagements, part-time availability, 10-hour break between shifts for non-casuals, break timing and the 12-hour spread on split shifts. That is where many restaurant payroll errors begin.

When processing payroll

Pay the correct classification rate, then separately apply casual loading, penalties, overtime and allowances as required. Make sure public holiday minimum engagements are applied and that juniors serving alcohol are not left on junior percentages.

When using salaries

Do not rely on a handshake arrangement. Use a proper written annualised wage agreement, track actual hours and breaks, and reconcile regularly.

Final thoughts

If you are talking about the Australian restaurant sector, the Restaurant Industry Award [MA000119] is usually the starting point, but it is not safe to assume it applies to every food venue. Once award coverage is confirmed, the next priorities are getting the classification right, tracking the employee’s real employment type, and applying the correct penalties, overtime, break rules and allowances. That is what keeps restaurant payroll compliant in practice, not just knowing the base hourly rate.

This guide is based on the Restaurant Industry Award [MA000119] and Fair Work information available at the time of writing. Pay rates, allowances and conditions can change, so employers should confirm current details on the Fair Work Ombudsman website before making payroll decisions.