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INDredging Industry Award Pay Calculator
Work out what a week under the Dredging Industry Award actually pays — the right classification and rate, shift loadings, overtime and casual loading, calculated the way the award says.
How the Dredging Industry Award is applied
- Minimum rates are the clause 15.2 role rates, current from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026 (PR799365, PR799520).
- Casuals get a 25% loading on the ordinary hourly rate — but not on overtime, which the award pays at a flat rate regardless of employment type.
- A shift starting at or after 6pm Monday to Friday attracts a flat 30% loading (clause 20.2(a)); an afternoon or night shift under a 3-shift-per-day system adds a further 15% on top where that roster applies.
- All overtime, any day Monday to Sunday except public holidays, is paid at a flat 200% — there is no first-tier/after-tier split like many other awards use.
- Public holidays pay 250% for every hour worked, ordinary or overtime, with a 4-hour minimum payment — the award’s highest rate.
- Superannuation (12%) applies to ordinary-time earnings, including shift loadings and the public holiday penalty on ordinary hours — but not to overtime.
- Fully operational dredges typically run on 12-hour day or night shifts across a continuous 7-day roster, and crew are paid the clause 15.3 aggregated rate — a single weekly or hourly figure that already bundles in the shift, weekend and holiday exposure of that roster plus the dredging industry allowance. That is a different pay structure entirely from the ordinary-hours-plus-penalties model this calculator uses, so it is not modelled here — use the clause 15.3 figures directly, or check the enterprise agreement or full award text that applies to that vessel.
Who the award covers
- Operation of vessels in dredging or sluicing work — land reclamation, mining and oil and gas projects
- Self-propelled dredges, non-propelled dredges, barges and tugs used to dredge ports, harbours, bays, estuaries, rivers and channels
- Crew, engine-room and deck classifications named in clause 15 — from Dredgehand and Greaser up to Chief engineer and Trailer master
- On-hire (labour hire) employees placed into dredging work
- Group training service employees engaged in the dredging industry
Marine Towage Award, Seagoing Industry Award, Ports, Harbours and Enclosed Water Vessels Award, Stevedoring Industry Award, Coal Export Terminals Award and Maritime Offshore Oil and Gas Award all carve out their own vessels and crews — check which one actually covers the work before you classify. Shore-based maintenance contractors sit under the Manufacturing and Associated Industries and Occupations Award instead.
Which level is your team member?
The Dredging Award classifies by named role, not by a skill-level ladder — clause 15 lists each job title (Dredgehand, Greaser, Bosun, Chief engineer and so on) against its own minimum rate, and clause 12.3 leaves the employer to determine classification "based on the skill level or levels the employee requires to carry out the principal functions of their employment". Pick the title that matches the job actually being done.
| Level | Per hour | Per week (38h) | Typical roles | The test |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trailer master / Chief engineer | $35.66 | $1354.90 | Trailer master · Chief engineer | The top rate on a not-fully-operational dredge — in charge of the vessel or its engine room. |
| First engineer / Electrical engineer | $34.66 | $1317.20 | Trailer shift master · Tug master (W.H. Reliance or equivalent) · First engineer · Electrical engineer (Humber River or equivalent) | Second-in-charge of the vessel or its engineering, or in command of a tug. |
| Trailer mate / Second engineer | $31.87 | $1211.10 | Trailer mate · Tug master/tug engineer · Second engineer/electrical engineer · Pump operator · Welder · Bosun/driller | A qualified tradesperson or watchkeeper — pump operation, welding or driving/supervising on deck. |
| Launch driver | $30.88 | $1173.60 | Launch driver | Operates the launch used to service the dredge and its crew. |
| Bosun / Chief cook | $30.27 | $1150.40 | Assistant pump operator · Driller/deckhand-driller · Bosun · Chief cook | Runs the deck crew day-to-day, drives the drilling rig, or heads the galley. |
| Able seaman (standard rate) | $29.53 | $1122.30 | Deckhand/assistant driller · Able seaman · Deckhand · Dredgehand · Greaser · Firefighter · Motorman · Crew attendant · Second cook | The award’s standard rate — general deck, engine-room and galley duties on a not-fully-operational dredge. |
- This calculator models the clause 15.2 rate table — crew on a dredge other than a non-propelled dredge that is not fully operational, working a standard Mon–Fri, 8am–4:30pm week. It is the only one of the award’s three rate tables built on ordinary weekly hours.
- Non-propelled dredges (clause 15.1) use a separate, generally lower rate table for the same job titles — check clause 15.1 if that is the vessel type in question.
- Fully operational vessels (clause 15.3) pay a single aggregated rate per role that already folds in all conditions, penalties and the dredging industry allowance, split into day-worker and shiftworker figures — it is not built from ordinary hours plus separate penalties, so it does not fit this bucket-and-overtime model. Use the clause 15.3 figures directly for that cohort.
- The "standard rate" the award refers to elsewhere (for allowance indexation, etc.) is the Able seaman weekly rate under clause 15.2 — $1,122.30/week at 1 July 2026.
Allowances that can apply on top
Base rates and penalties aren’t the whole pay picture. The Dredging Industry Award adds allowances for particular duties and situations — being the designated first aid officer, working overtime without notice, using your own car. They’re small lines individually, but they’re legal entitlements and they add up. The common ones (1 July 2026 amounts):
The calculator below doesn’t include allowances — add the ones that apply to your team on top of the result. The full list lives in the award’s allowances clause.
Break entitlements under the Dredging Industry Award
Breaks are part of the award too — and missed or worked-through breaks usually carry a penalty rate, so they belong in the roster, not just the tea room. Here’s what the Dredging Industry Award requires:
No one can work more than 18 hours continuously under this award. The full rules live in clause 14.
Calculate a week under the Dredging Industry Award
Enter the week as it’s actually rostered. Weekend, evening and public-holiday hours are paid at the award’s penalty rates; anything beyond 38 hours is priced as overtime; super is applied to ordinary-time earnings only.
Rates current as of 1 July 2026 (adult minimums, MA000085) — first full pay period on or after that date.
This week’s numbers
Nothing is stored or sent — the maths runs on this page.
Are these the exact legal rates?
The rates are the clause 15.2 (not-fully-operational) adult minimums, current at 1 July 2026. Non-propelled dredges (clause 15.1) and fully operational dredges (clause 15.3, aggregated rate) use different tables entirely — this calculator does not cover those. Treat the result as a planning number and confirm against the award or your payroll adviser.
Why don’t I see separate Saturday and Sunday penalty rates?
The award does not set a distinct weekend penalty for this cohort — any work outside the 38-hour Mon–Fri ordinary span, including weekends, is overtime at the flat 200% rate. That is different from awards like Retail or Hospitality, which pay weekend penalties on ordinary hours.
What about crews on a fully operational dredge working a 12-hour roster?
They are paid a different way entirely — a single aggregated weekly or hourly rate (clause 15.3) that already bundles in shift, weekend and holiday exposure across the roster, plus the dredging industry allowance. That aggregate wage arrangement is not something a per-bucket ordinary-hours calculator like this one can represent accurately — use the clause 15.3 figures directly, and check the applicable enterprise agreement or the full award text for how the roster is actually paid.
Does super apply to the shift loading?
Yes — the 30% (and 15%) shift loadings are paid on ordinary hours, so they count as ordinary-time earnings and attract the 12% super guarantee. Overtime and the flat 200%/250% rates paid on overtime hours are excluded.
This is a general calculator, not legal advice. It applies the award’s published adult minimums to the hours you enter — it can’t see your enterprise agreement, allowances or individual arrangements, and junior, apprentice and shiftwork rates differ. Always confirm pay against the award, your agreement or your adviser. If you believe something here is materially wrong or out of date, please contact us — we’ll review it promptly.
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