When does the clothing and equipment allowance apply under SCHADS?

It applies when an employer does not provide the required uniform. It is paid per shift or per week, whichever amount is smaller.

What is the SCHADS laundry allowance?

Employees receive a laundry allowance if the employer provides uniforms but does not launder them. It is paid based on the smaller of the shift or weekly amount.

Do part time and casual employees receive the first aid allowance?

Yes. Part time and casual employees receive 44 cents per hour up to a maximum of $16.80 per week if they are required to perform first aid duties.

What triggers the SCHADS meal allowance?

It applies when an employee works overtime and the employer does not provide a suitable meal.

How is the SCHADS on call allowance calculated?

It is calculated as a percentage of the standard rate. The rate is 2 percent for weekdays and 3.96 percent for weekends and public holidays.

How to Prepare for a SCHADS Payroll Audit: 5 Areas Auditors Check in SCHADS Payroll

Name: SCHADS Allowances Explained: The 7 Allowances You Must Pay Under the SCHADS Award
Uploaded: 2023-01-01
Duration: 3 min 40 s
Description: A clear walkthrough of the seven allowances in the SCHADS Award, including conditions, rates and common errors to watch for.

How to Prepare for a SCHADS Payroll Audit: 5 Areas Auditors Check in SCHADS Payroll

Introduction

This video explains the key areas that SCHADS payroll audits focus on and highlights where errors are most likely to occur. It covers the main components that auditors check in community services, disability support, and home care providers, including penalties, loadings, overtime, and allowances. The video breaks down the different types of penalties and overtime calculations, as well as the common allowance mistakes that can lead to significant underpayments. By understanding these audit areas, employers and payroll staff can ensure payroll is applied accurately and in line with SCHADS award conditions.

Key Takeaways

SCHADS payroll audits focus on five main areas where errors commonly occur.
Penalties include afternoon, night shift, weekend, and public holiday rates.
Overtime covers daily, period-based, and sleepover wake periods, with minimum breaks between shifts.
Allowances such as broken shift, sleepovers, kilometer allowance, overtime meal allowance, and first aid must follow award conditions precisely.
Incorrectly configured or missing allowances can result in significant underpayments.

Transcript

Key Focus Areas in SCHADS Payroll Audits

So every SCHADS payroll audit focuses on the same five key areas. These are the areas where auditors know errors are most likely to occur, especially in community services, disability support, and home care providers.

Penalties, Loadings, and Overtime

So we're just going to break them down. We have their penalties, loadings, and overtime. SCHADS is full of penalties. We have the afternoon penalties, the night shift penalties, the weekend and public holiday penalties. And then we have all of the overtime. This would be their sleepover wake periods. It would be overtime based on the shift length, so there's the daily overtime and the period overtime, and minimum breaks between shifts. Payroll has to apply all of these accurately.

Allowances

Then we have the allowances. This is where most SCHADS payroll mistakes happen. There's broken shift, sleepovers, kilometer allowance, overtime meal allowance, and first aid. They must all trigger exactly according to the award conditions. If any allowance is missing or misconfigured, the underpayment can end up being significant.