{"id":4325,"date":"2026-09-18T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-09-17T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.amt.org.au\/?p=4325"},"modified":"2026-09-17T19:26:19","modified_gmt":"2026-09-17T09:26:19","slug":"new-award-pay-rates-land-on-1-october","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.amt.org.au\/index.php\/2026\/09\/18\/new-award-pay-rates-land-on-1-october\/","title":{"rendered":"New Award pay rates land on 1 October"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Back in mid-2025 we let you know<\/a> 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A new classification structure<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

From October 1, the HPSS Award classification structure and minimum pay rates will align with the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What does this mean for remedial massage therapists and myotherapists?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The Diploma of Remedial Massage sits at AQF Level 5 (Level 1 \u2013 AQF5 on the Award classification table). The Advanced Diploma of Myotherapy is an AQF Level 6 qualification (Level 1 \u2013 AQF6 on the Award classification table).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key dates<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The\u00a0new 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).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Navigating the new classifications<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s unpack a few examples. If you\u2019ve 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).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019ve been a myotherapist for 5 years, that places you at Level 1 \u2013 AQF 6 \u2013 4th \u2013 6th year (row 8).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you take on genuine supervisory, training, or specialist duties beyond standard client work, it\u2019s 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.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The rates listed in the table below are current from October 1.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Table: Health Professional Employee, Level 1 classifications<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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What does this mean for employers?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

If you haven\u2019t 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<\/a> for more information and seek advice if you\u2019re not sure about how to classify your staff. You\u2019ll find the full HPSS Award and pay guides here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A note on ordinary hours of work<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

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<\/a>. (The link will take you directly to the relevant part of the Award, section 13.2.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What you should check now<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Whether you’re an employee or an employer, now is the time to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n