Award register

MA000102CurrentRetail, hospitality and recreation

Travelling Shows Award

The Travelling Shows Award is built for itinerant show businesses, not every operator at a public event. Small businesses usually need to focus on three things: whether the business is truly a travelling show operation, whether employees have been correctly graded and engaged, and whether long event days are being managed under the award's hours, roster and break rules. Travel and uniform related entitlements also deserve close attention because movement between locations is central to the award.

Consolidated through
1 July 2026
Source checked
1 August 2026
Official source
Current award

01Who this award covers

This award is for the travelling shows industry, meaning itinerant operations associated with shows, carnivals, rodeos, gymkhanas, community events and festivals. It covers the operation of stands, fixtures or structures for amusement, food or recreation, including erection, dismantling and maintenance. It is not a general award for every trader who turns up at an event.

Businesses and work usually covered

  • Itinerant show businesses operating amusement, food or recreation structures during the currency of a show or similar event.
  • Work connected with erection, dismantling and maintenance of covered show stands, fixtures and structures.
  • Labour hire employees supplied into covered travelling shows work.
  • Trainees hosted through group training services into covered travelling show work.

When another award or arrangement may apply

  • Employers bound by the General Retail Industry Award 2020.
  • Employees who are immediate family members of the employer.
  • Employees excluded from award coverage by the Act.
  • Employees covered by a modern enterprise award, enterprise instrument or relevant state public sector award.
  • Employees whose work is better matched to another award classification where this award does not provide a suitable classification.

02Roles and classifications

The award contains classification levels that connect an employee's duties, skills and responsibility to a minimum rate. Common role descriptions include:

  • Grade 1 employees, including new entrants and ride attendants.
  • Employees working in itinerant stands, fixtures or structures that provide amusement, food or recreation.
  • Employees involved in erecting, dismantling or maintaining travelling show equipment and structures.
  • Part-time and casual travelling show employees across the grade structure.
  • Employees directed to travel between show locations around Australia.

A familiar job title is only a starting point. Match the employee's real duties against the classification definitions and keep a written record of the level selected.

03Rules employers need to check

Separate travelling show work from other event work

cl Clause 4 coverage, Clause 12 classifications

Coverage turns on the travelling show character of the business and a matching award classification. Event context alone is not enough.

  • Confirm that the employer is running an itinerant travelling show operation rather than ordinary retail or another event business.
  • Check that the employee fits the award's grade structure.
  • Do not assume event work is covered just because it happens at a showground.

Document engagement and grade decisions

cl Clauses 8 to 12

This award expects written discipline around engagement type and grading, even in short term or event based operations. Informal staffing practices create avoidable risk.

  • Part-time employees need a written regular pattern of work.
  • Casual employees have a minimum engagement and daily overtime exposure once they work beyond the award's ordinary daily limit.
  • Employers must advise employees in writing of their classification on commencement and of any later change.

Build event rosters against the award

cl Clause 13 ordinary hours, Clause 14 rostering, Clause 15 breaks

Travelling shows often run around event pressure, but the award still sets the rules for ordinary hours, roster changes and breaks.

  • Ordinary hours are averaged over the award cycle, with limited scope for longer ordinary days by majority agreement.
  • Roster alterations require notice.
  • Meal breaks for full-time and part-time employees and rest breaks for qualifying casual employees need to be built into event scheduling.

Review travel, uniform and other allowances

cl Clause 18 allowances

The extra costs of itinerant work are dealt with through allowances and reimbursements. They should be checked role by role.

  • The award includes driving, first aid, protective clothing, uniform and laundry, and travel and accommodation style provisions.
  • Those entitlements depend on what the employee is directed to do and what costs the employer requires the employee to bear.
  • Travel between show locations should trigger a specific review, not assumptions.

Check overlap with retail and other instruments

cl Clause 3 NES and award, Clause 4.5 overlap rule

Award choice can still be contested in mixed show and retail settings. Do not skip the overlap analysis because the work is temporary or mobile.

  • The NES still apply.
  • If more than one award could cover the employer, the employee falls under the classification most appropriate to the work and the environment in which it is normally performed.
  • The retail exclusion remains important for mixed businesses.

Use flexibility arrangements properly

cl Clause 5 flexibility arrangements

Operational convenience does not replace the award's flexibility rules. If terms are varied, the formal process still matters.

  • Any flexibility arrangement has to be genuinely agreed, in writing and leave the employee better off overall.
  • A flat event based deal is not a shortcut around breaks, overtime or allowances.

04Pay rates, penalties and allowances

The safest way to check a current rate is to start with the employee's classification, employment type and working pattern, then use Fair Work's current pay guide or Pay and Conditions Tool. Rates can change after an Annual Wage Review or an award variation.

Open the official pay guideFair Work OmbudsmanCalculate pay and conditionsFair Work Pay and Conditions Tool

05Common workplace examples

Ride operator travelling between agricultural shows

Likely yes. That is the core kind of itinerant amusement activity the award is written for, subject to the grade that best matches the work being done and any exclusion that might apply.

Fixed retail food business trading at a festival

Usually no under this award if the business is bound by the General Retail Industry Award 2020 rather than operating as a travelling show business. The event location does not decide the award by itself.

Employee directed to move from one show circuit location to another

The award can apply, but the employer should then review the travel and accommodation provisions because the award contemplates employees being directed to present themselves at various locations throughout Australia.

06Recent changes to this award

PR799280, PR799382, PR799537

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 A - Summary of Hourly Rates of Pay, Schedule B - Summary of Monetary Allowances, Schedule C - Supported Wage System

07What to do next

  1. 01Decide whether the business is genuinely itinerant travelling show work or ordinary retail or event work.
  2. 02Issue written classification notices and keep records of any later reclassification.
  3. 03Put every part-time pattern in writing before the first shift.
  4. 04Check long event days against the award's ordinary hours, break rules and roster notice requirements.
  5. 05Review travel, accommodation, uniform and protective clothing obligations whenever staff move between locations.
  6. 06Do not assume family members or retail bound businesses can be covered under this award.

08Common questions

Does this award cover every stall or ride at a show?

No. The award is aimed at itinerant travelling show operations. A fixed retailer or a business already bound by the General Retail Industry Award 2020 is outside this award.

How do the grades work?

The award uses a grade structure. Grade 1 is the entry point for new entrants and ride attendants, and employers must advise employees in writing of their classification and any changes to it.

Do rostering and breaks matter much under this award?

Yes. This award contains specific rules on average weekly hours, roster notice and meal or rest breaks. Event schedules do not override those rules automatically.

What if staff move from show to show?

Yes. The award expects employees may be directed to present themselves at different locations throughout Australia and includes travel and accommodation provisions that need to be checked when that happens.

Do I still need to check the NES and other instruments?

The NES still apply, and enterprise awards, enterprise instruments and some state public sector awards can displace this award. Coverage still needs to be checked even in a travelling show environment.

Official sources and related help

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Modern award coverage and classification depend on the facts. Check the current official award and get advice for your business before relying on this page.

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