Educational Services (Post-Secondary Education) Award

Coverage can arise through post-secondary education or training services, or through the student union limb in clause 4.2(i). The employee must also fit an award classification, and every relevant exclusion must be checked.

• Check whether the employer provides one of the education or training services described in clause 4.2, or whether clause 4.2(i) applies to employees of a student union established for students in an institution providing post-secondary educational services.
• Confirm that the employee's principal functions and skill requirements fit a classification in Schedule A, B or C.
• Check every exclusion in clauses 4.3 and 4.4 before concluding that the award applies.
• Where more than one award may cover the employer, use the classification most appropriate to the employee's work and normal work environment.
• Recheck coverage if the employer's services or the employee's principal duties change.

Clear appointment documents are essential, particularly for part-time and sessional employees whose hours or period of employment are limited.

• Engage employees as full-time, part-time, casual or sessional, as permitted by the award.
• Give each non-casual employee an appointment letter stating the classification, pay rate and employment category.
• State the cessation date in the appointment letter of a sessional teacher.
• Before a part-time employee starts, agree in writing on weekly hours, working days, relevant start and finish times, and any periods when work will not be required.
• Make changes to agreed part-time hours only by written agreement. Unless hours are averaged, work beyond the agreed hours is overtime.

Minimum engagement rules vary between part-time employees, casual teaching staff and casual general staff. Classification must be settled before payment is calculated.

• Roster a part-time employee for at least 2 consecutive hours on each working day.
• Pay a casual teacher or tutor or instructor for at least 2 hours for each engagement.
• Pay casual general staff for at least 3 hours for each engagement.
• Configure payroll so that a short class, meeting or administrative attendance does not result in payment below the applicable minimum engagement.

The correct stream, level and progression point affect minimum entitlements. Keep enough information to explain each decision.

• Select the classification by comparing substantive duties with the relevant schedule, not by copying the employee's internal title.
• For academic teachers, consider autonomy, teaching and research duties, coordination, leadership, academic standing and experience.
• Conduct the annual academic staff development and performance review required by Schedule A.
• Apply academic salary progression only when the Schedule A requirements concerning skills, experience, knowledge and satisfactory performance are met.
• For teachers and tutor/instructors, apply the Schedule B classification descriptors and the qualification, experience and progression rules relevant to the employee.

Teaching delivery is only one component of working time, so workload systems must include the associated work recognised by clause 14. Clause 14A separately deals with the employee right to disconnect.

• For full-time general staff, ordinary hours average 38 per week over a permitted work cycle and generally do not exceed 10 consecutive hours in a day, excluding meal breaks.
• Apply the weekday and Saturday spreads in clause 14.1 to general staff. Moving the spread by up to 1 hour at either end requires agreement between the employer and the majority of employees concerned.
• For NES purposes, academic teachers, teachers and tutor/instructors have 38 ordinary hours per week, with annual averaging permitted by the award.
• Count academic lectures, tutorials and qualifying repeats using the conversion rules in clause 14.2.
• Count teacher and tutor or instructor contact hours using the separate conversion rules in clause 14.3.
• Check clause 14A, which deals with the employee right to disconnect, when setting expectations about contact outside working hours.

Shiftworkers and non-shiftworkers have different meal break arrangements. A missed meal break can create an additional payment obligation.

• Give a shiftworker a paid meal break of at least 20 minutes no later than 5 hours after the shift starts.
• Give a non-shiftworker an unpaid meal break of between 30 and 60 minutes and do not require more than 5 hours of work without it.
• Provide the 2 paid 10 minute rest breaks prescribed for each working day.
• Provide the additional paid break required after each 4 hours of overtime and the specified Saturday morning overtime break.
• Apply the missed meal break payment rule until the employee receives the break.

For general staff within the clause 20 limits, overtime treatment depends on classification level, employment category, shift status, day and time. Do not apply these rules automatically to teaching staff.

• For non-shiftwork general staff at Level 7 or below, identify work beyond the fixed work-cycle hours or outside the clause 14.1 hours.
• For non-shiftwork general staff at Level 7 or below, apply the separate clause 20 overtime provisions for full-time, part-time and casual employees.
• For shiftwork general staff at Level 7 or below, distinguish work beyond weekly ordinary hours from work beyond daily ordinary hours.
• For non-shiftwork general staff, check Saturday, Sunday and public holiday penalties and the applicable minimum payments.
• Do not combine clause 20 overtime and clause 22 penalty rates. Apply the highest single applicable rate.

Each allowance has a specific trigger. Appointment records, expense records and overtime details should be captured when the entitlement arises.

• Pay the first aid allowance where an appropriately qualified employee has been appointed in writing to perform first aid duty.
• Reimburse qualifying uniforms, protective clothing and protective footwear unless the employer provides the relevant item.
• Apply the laundry allowance when an employee is required to wear and launder a uniform.
• Check the meal allowance provisions when general staff work qualifying overtime, including the notice, duration and supplied-meal conditions.
• Review living-away-from-home entitlements before requiring an employee to work temporarily away from their usual residence.

The award operates with the NES and other workplace instruments. An informal agreement cannot replace the safeguards in clause 5.

• Apply the NES together with the award, including the NES provisions dealing with annual leave and changes to casual employment status.
• Use an individual flexibility arrangement only for arrangements about when work is performed, overtime rates, penalty rates, allowances or annual leave loading.
• Make the arrangement after employment starts, through genuine agreement and without coercion or duress.
• Put the arrangement in writing, explain how the employee is better off overall, obtain the required signatures, give the employee a copy and retain it as a time and wages record.
• Check for a modern enterprise award, enterprise instrument, State reference public sector instrument or other award before treating this award as the complete basis for payroll settings.

PR799280, PR799355, PR799511

The current consolidated award incorporates these recent variation determinations. Use the consolidated wording when checking any affected clause, schedule, rate or allowance.

Affected: 16 - Minimum rates, 18 - Allowances, Schedule D - Summary of Hourly Rates of Pay - General Staff, Schedule E - Summary of Monetary Allowances, Schedule F - Supported Wage System