New Award pay rates land on 1 October

Back in mid-2025 we let you know that significant changes were coming for therapists employed under the Health Professionals and Support Services Award (HPSS Award). These changes are about to commence on the 1st of October.

A new classification structure

From October 1, the HPSS Award classification structure and minimum pay rates will align with the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF).

The new classification system is based on a major Fair Work Commission review into gender-based undervaluation across five modern awards in female-dominated sectors, including health professionals covered by the HPSS Award. The Commission found that Award minimum rates hadn’t properly reflected the qualifications, skills, responsibilities and complexity of the work, in part because of historical assumptions tied to the fact that these are female-dominated professions.

What does this mean for remedial massage therapists and myotherapists?

The Diploma of Remedial Massage sits at AQF Level 5 (Level 1 – AQF5 on the Award classification table). The Advanced Diploma of Myotherapy is an AQF Level 6 qualification (Level 1 – AQF6 on the Award classification table).

Progression through pay points is based on total years of experience in the profession, whether that experience was full-time, part-time or casual. If you’ve been working part-time for years, this is very likely to work in your favour!

Under the old system, part-time and casual employees had to accumulate a set number of hours equivalent to full time (1,824) before progressing to the next pay point, effectively slowing down progression for anyone not working full time. The Commission made this change specifically so that part-time workers, disproportionately women with caring responsibilities, aren’t disadvantaged. We know from successive workforce surveys and government data that the massage therapy profession remains predominantly part time (77% part-time share).

Key dates

The new Award rates are being phased in between 2026 and 2030. The first stage begins on October 1 and further scheduled increases apply each July 1st from 2027 to 2030, after which rates rise via the normal annual wage review (as with any other Award).

Navigating the new classifications

Let’s unpack a few examples. If you’ve been working as a remedial massage therapist for 3 years, that will place you on the second row of the Award Classification Table below (Level 1 – AQF5 – 2nd-3rd year).

If you’ve been a myotherapist for 5 years, that places you at Level 1 – AQF 6 – 4th – 6th year (row 8).

If you take on genuine supervisory, training, or specialist duties beyond standard client work, it’s conceivable that you could progress to a Level 2 classification but this depends on the actual duties performed, not years of experience, qualification or job title alone. (Employers will need to seek professional advice on classifying staff in this kind of scenario.)

The rates listed in the table below are current from October 1.  

Table: Health Professional Employee, Level 1 classifications

What does this mean for employers?

If you haven’t reviewed the classifications of your staff yet, there are only a few weeks left to get on top of these changes before the October 1 deadline. You should visit the Fair Work Ombudsman website for more information and seek advice if you’re not sure about how to classify your staff. You’ll find the full HPSS Award and pay guides here.

A note on ordinary hours of work

Under the HPSS Award, the span of hours for therapists working in private practice is long, and includes most of Saturday. We recommend that you become familiar with the span of hours in the Award. (The link will take you directly to the relevant part of the Award, section 13.2.)

What you should check now

Whether you’re an employee or an employer, now is the time to:

• confirm which classification and pay point you (or your team) should sit in from 1 October, based on qualification and actual years of experience.
• compare current pay rates against the new minimum. Employers need to pay whichever is higher – the translated rate under the new structure or the current rate. Nobody’s pay should go backwards.
• seek advice if you are unsure. Don’t leave it until the end of September. Employers in particular are being encouraged to map out the changes early rather than scrambling on October 1.

But I am a subcontractor, not an employee …

This is the perfect time to revisit your contract rate. Subcontractors aren’t directly covered by the Award, but Award movements are a reasonable, evidence-based reference point for renegotiating your rates and conditions, especially if it’s been a while since they have been reviewed.

Conclusion

Change has been a long time coming for a profession that’s spent years feeling undervalued! This is a significant shift. Make sure you keep as informed about the situation as you can.

We’ve updated our HPSS Award fact sheet, including basic information on the new classification structure. You’ll find it in the practice resources section of the website, along with other useful documents.

If you’re unsure how the changes apply to your specific situation, the Fair Work Ombudsman is the authoritative source. We also strongly advise that you obtain independent professional advice before signing or varying any contract. Obviously, AMT can only provide information and broad guidance on these changes, not legal advice.