Operator Guide · Updated 18 May 2026
The Hair & Beauty Industry Award (MA000005), in plain English
The Hair and Beauty Industry Award 2020 (MA000005) is the Fair Work modern award that sets minimum pay and conditions for hairdressers, barbers, beauty therapists, and salon staff in Australia. This plain-language guide covers its six classification levels, apprentice and trainee progression, junior rates, casual loading, Saturday and Sunday penalties, public holidays, and the hairdresser tool allowance.
Step 1, Classify Your Team
The six classification levels
Every employee under MA000005 is classified at Level 1 to 6. The level sets the base hourly rate, before any apprentice percentage, junior percentage, casual loading, or penalty applies. Misclassification (paying a Level 4 stylist at Level 3 rates) is one of the most common underpayment findings in salon Fair Work audits.
Hair and Beauty Employee Level 1: Junior / Trainee
Entry-level employees in their first year of work or a formal traineeship. Reception, salon assistance, shampoo, basic product knowledge. The base rate of the award.
Typical roles
- Salon assistant: greeting, shampoo, blow-dry support
- Cleaning, restocking, laundry, basic reception
- First-year trainees under formal traineeship contracts
Hair and Beauty Employee Level 2: Qualified Assistant
Employees who have completed a relevant traineeship or have substantial salon-floor experience. More autonomous reception, retail sales, basic technical support to a senior stylist.
Typical roles
- Reception with bookings, retail recommendation, POS
- Roller-setting, basic blow-dry, supporting a colour
- Mid-traineeship apprentices not yet in third year
Hair and Beauty Employee Level 3: Junior Stylist / Beauty Therapist
Holds Cert III in Hairdressing or Cert III in Beauty Services, or is in the final year of apprenticeship. Performs full services under salon supervision but is the chair-holder for routine bookings.
Typical roles
- Cuts, blow-dries, basic colour as a primary stylist
- Cert III beauty therapy: waxing, facials, basic spa
- Final-year apprentices taking their own bookings
Hair and Beauty Employee Level 4: Qualified Stylist / Therapist
Fully qualified Cert III or Cert IV with 1 to 3 years post-qualification experience. Independent across the full service menu; minimal direct supervision needed.
Typical roles
- Independent colour technician (foils, balayage, corrective)
- Cert IV beauty therapy: advanced facials, body, paramedical
- Hair stylist running their own column with rebook clientele
Hair and Beauty Employee Level 5: Senior Stylist / Senior Therapist
Senior practitioner; sometimes mentors juniors or apprentices. Holds advanced colour, cutting, or aesthetic qualifications and a strong personal client base.
Typical roles
- Senior colour technician training juniors
- Senior beauty therapist with laser or paramedical credentials
- Lead stylist on colour direction / educator role
Hair and Beauty Employee Level 6: Salon Manager
Day-to-day operational responsibility for the salon, staff rosters, banking, supplier orders, training calendar. May or may not hold a chair themselves.
Typical roles
- Salon manager managing 5+ team members
- Multi-site manager (often paid above award)
- Senior manager combining technical practice + leadership
Step 2, Apprentice & Trainee Progression
Cert III pathways and pay progression
Apprentices and trainees are paid a percentage of the qualified trade rate, increasing each year as they progress. The percentages below are indicative, confirm against the current Fair Work pay tool for exact dollar amounts at the time of hire.
Hairdressing Cert III
3-year apprenticeship. Year 1 ~50% trade rate, Year 2 ~60%, Year 3 ~75% to 80%, Year 4 ~90%, see Fair Work pay tool for current rates.
Beauty Services Cert III
Typically 24-month traineeship or full-time course; covers waxing, facials, manicure/pedicure, makeup. Trainee rates apply under the award.
Cert IV Beauty Therapy
Adds advanced facials, body treatments, electrolysis. Most therapists working unsupervised hold Cert IV, though Cert III is the minimum for many states.
Adult vs school-leaver apprentices
Adult apprentices (21+ at the start of the apprenticeship) attract a higher pay scale at each year, usually closely tracking the junior-rate progression.
Step 3, Junior Rates
Under-21 percentages
Junior employees (not in apprenticeships) are paid a percentage of the adult Level 1 rate based on age. Apprentices have a separate scale, these percentages apply only to non-apprentice juniors (e.g. a 17-year-old salon assistant).
| Age | Percentage | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Under 16 | ~50% | Of the adult Level 1 rate. |
| 16 years | ~60% | Of the adult Level 1 rate. |
| 17 years | ~70% | Of the adult Level 1 rate. |
| 18 years | ~80% | Of the adult Level 1 rate. |
| 19 years | ~90% | Of the adult Level 1 rate. |
| 20 years | Adult rate | Most employees reach adult rate at 20 under MA000005. |
Indicative percentages, confirm exact percentages and dollar amounts against the current MA000005 schedule on fwc.gov.au.
Step 4, Apply Loadings
Casual loading, weekend penalties, overtime
Loadings are percentage additions to the base hourly rate. They stack, a casual employee working Sunday attracts the casual loading + Sunday penalty.
| Type | Loading | When it applies |
|---|---|---|
| Casual loading | +25% | Added to base hourly rate for casual employees in lieu of annual leave, personal leave, and notice entitlements. Applied to every casual hour. |
| Saturday penalty | +33% (1.33x) | Full-time, part-time, and casual employees working ordinary Saturday hours. Casuals receive Saturday penalty PLUS casual loading on top of the base. |
| Sunday penalty | +50% (1.5x) | Time and a half for Sunday work for full-time, part-time, and casual employees (casuals receive Sunday penalty + casual loading). |
| Public holiday | +150% (2.5x) | Two-and-a-half times the ordinary rate for public-holiday work, in addition to entitlement to the holiday at ordinary rates if rostered off. |
| Overtime, first 2 hours | +50% (1.5x) | When daily or weekly ordinary hours are exceeded. Distinct from casual loading. |
| Overtime, after 2 hours / Sundays | +100% (2.0x) | Double time after the first 2 hours of overtime in a shift, or for all overtime worked on a Sunday. |
Percentages reflect the structure of MA000005 at the time of review. Always confirm specific clauses against the current instrument on fwc.gov.au.
Step 5, Allowances
Allowances paid on top of the hourly rate
The hairdresser tool allowance is the most commonly missed entitlement. If your stylist supplies their own scissors, you owe them the weekly amount, even if you also supply other equipment.
Tool allowance (hairdressers)
Weekly amount paid to hairdressers who supply their own tools (scissors, combs, clips). Most salons that pay tools also let staff buy/keep premium scissors, common practice.
First-aid allowance
For nominated employees holding a current first-aid certificate and required to perform first-aid duties on shift.
Meal allowance
Paid when overtime extends past the normal meal break and the employee was not notified in advance to bring a meal.
Uniform allowance
Paid where the employer requires a specific uniform but does not supply or launder it. Many salons supply uniforms instead.
Higher-duties allowance
When a Level 4 stylist temporarily performs the duties of the Level 6 manager (e.g. manager on annual leave), they're entitled to the higher rate for the duration.
Travel between sites
Multi-site salon chains paying staff to move between locations during a shift must pay travel time at ordinary rate plus reasonable mileage if own vehicle is used.
Span of hours, RDOs, and overtime triggers
Ordinary span of hours
Monday to Friday 7:00 am to 9:00 pm, Saturday 7:00 am to 6:00 pm, and Sunday by agreement. Work outside this span attracts overtime regardless of total hours.
Weekly ordinary hours
38 hours per week for full-time employees, averaged over the roster cycle. Hours beyond 38/week or 9.5/day trigger overtime rates.
Rostered Days Off (RDOs)
Full-time employees rostering 40 hours/week may accrue an RDO every 4 weeks. The RDO mechanism is optional under MA000005, check the contract.
Breaks
Paid 10-minute tea break after 4 hours; unpaid 30 to 60 minute meal break after 5 hours. If overtime extends past the normal meal break without notice, meal allowance kicks in.
Practical tips for operators
Classify on the qualification + duties, not the title
A “Senior Stylist” doing only Level 4 duties is still a Level 4 employee. The classification is determined by the actual work, not the marketing title.
Sunday trading needs an honest sum
A casual stylist on a Sunday at +25% loading + 50% Sunday penalty is being paid ~190% of base rate. For many salons, Sunday only breaks even if the chair is at 80%+ occupancy. Quote Sunday work realistically.
Pay the tool allowance even when nobody asks
Most underpayment claims in salons hinge on the tool allowance, not the base rate. Add it as a separate payslip line item from day one.
Super applies on top of all this
The Superannuation Guarantee applies to all ordinary time earnings, casual loading included. Most underpayment claims add 15% to 25% in missed super contributions on top of the base wage shortfall.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which award covers hair, beauty, and barber businesses in Australia?
The Hair and Beauty Industry Award 2020 (MA000005) covers hairdressers, barbers, beauty therapists, makeup artists, nail technicians, and salon support staff in Australia. It's published by the Fair Work Commission and reviewed annually. Sole-trader operators without staff don't strictly fall under the award, but anyone with even one part-time or casual employee does.
Where do I find the current MA000005 dollar rates?
Specific dollar amounts change each 1 July when the Fair Work Commission updates minimum award wages (the Annual Wage Review). Always check the Fair Work Ombudsman's Pay & Conditions Tool (pay.fairwork.gov.au) or the MA000005 instrument on fwc.gov.au for current rates. Rates in any third-party guide go stale fast, never rely on a cached figure.
Do apprentices get casual loading and penalties?
Apprentices are usually engaged full-time or part-time, not casual. They receive Saturday and Sunday penalty rates on top of their apprentice percentage, but not casual loading. School-based apprentices may have different arrangements, confirm the training contract terms.
Does casual loading apply before or after MA000005 penalties?
Casual loading (+25%) is paid on every casual hour worked, in lieu of paid leave entitlements. Overtime is paid when hours worked exceed the daily or weekly ordinary-hours threshold, typically +50% for the first 2 hours and +100% thereafter. A casual employee can receive both: casual loading on every hour, plus overtime rates on hours beyond the threshold.
Can I pay a 'chair rental' contractor instead of an employee under the award?
Only if the arrangement is genuinely a contractor relationship, the contractor sets their own prices, books their own clients, supplies their own product, and bears commercial risk. If you control bookings, set prices, and provide product, the ATO and Fair Work will deem them an employee regardless of what the contract says. Misclassification is the single biggest area of audit attention in the salon industry.
What records do I have to keep under the award?
Time-and-wages records must be kept for 7 years and include hours worked, base and penalty rates, allowances paid, leave taken, and superannuation contributions. Salons are a focused Fair Work audit target, clock-in records, rostering, and payslips need to reconcile cleanly. Booking software that timestamps shift start/end (like the OneBookPlus shift log) makes audits trivial.
Get rostering, time-tracking, and payslips off the spreadsheet
OneBookPlus tracks every shift, calculates penalty rates and loadings, and feeds your existing payroll provider, built for Australian salon operators.
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Reviewed by Bishal Shrestha
About the author
Bishal Shrestha
Founder & CEO, OneBookPlus
Bishal spent a decade running digital projects for Australian small businesses before founding OneBookPlus. He writes and maintains these pages, and publishes what OneBookPlus does not do alongside what it does.
Read the founder bioHow this page was researched
The compliance and licensing statements above are taken from the bodies this page links to, including the Fair Work pay calculator, so you can read the rule rather than take our word for it. Plan prices come from the OneBookPlus price registry, so the page and the checkout cannot disagree. Everything said about OneBookPlus describes what the product does today, and the page says so where it does not do something.
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