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INRestaurant Award Pay Calculator
Work out what a week under the Restaurant Award actually pays — the right classification level, late-night and weekend penalties, casual loading and super, calculated the way the award says.
How the Restaurant Award is applied
- Minimum rates are set per classification level — the calculator uses the adult rates from Table 3 (clause 18.1), current from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026.
- Casuals get a 25% loading on the ordinary rate, and the weekend/public-holiday percentages below already include it.
- Late nights are flat dollar additions, not percentages: $2.95/hr from 10pm to midnight and $4.42/hr from midnight to 6am, on top of the ordinary rate.
- Overtime applies beyond 38 ordinary weekly hours — and the first tier is only 2 hours (150%, then 200%), not the 3 hours many awards allow. Casual overtime does NOT get the 25% loading on top — confirmed against the FWO’s official pay guide, a casual’s overtime pays the same 150%/200% as everyone else’s.
- Superannuation (12%) applies to ordinary-time earnings, including penalty rates — but not to overtime.
- Casual Sunday rates split by level: Introductory–Level 2 casuals get 150% while Level 3–6 casuals get 175% — the calculator uses the higher figure, so adjust down if your team sits at Level 2 or below.
Who the award covers
- Restaurants throughout Australia — dining rooms, bistros and eateries built around sit-down service
- Front-of-house teams — food and beverage attendants, from glass collectors to fine-dining waiters
- Kitchen teams — kitchen attendants and cooks, from breakfast cook to chef de partie
- Clerical, office and store staff employed in a restaurant business
- Doorpersons, security and timekeeping staff at restaurant establishments
- Handypersons doing routine repairs and maintenance for the restaurant
Takeaway and food-court outlets sit under the Fast Food Award, pubs and hotels under the Hospitality Industry (General) Award, and registered clubs under the Clubs Award — check which industry you’re really in before you classify.
Which level is your team member?
The Restaurant Award runs one ladder of seven levels — Introductory plus Levels 1–6 — with several streams sitting inside it: food and beverage, kitchen, clerical, stores and security. Classify by training and duties, not the roster title: the same level covers a trained waiter, a grade 2 cook and a kitchen supervisor.
| Level | Per hour | Per week (38h) | Typical roles | The test |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Introductory | $25.74 | $978.10 | New entrant to the industry (first 3 months, up to 6 by agreement) | Hasn’t yet shown Level 1 competency — trains and is assessed for up to 3 months, then moves to Level 1. |
| Level 1 | $26.44 | $1004.90 | Glass collector · Table setter · Kitchen attendant gr 1 | Basic tasks without direct customer service: picking up glasses, clearing plates, setting and wiping tables, kitchen cleaning and prep assistance. |
| Level 2 | $27.08 | $1029.10 | Waiter (before training) · Bar attendant · Cook gr 1 · Snack-bar attendant · Storeperson gr 1 | Serving customers before formal training: waiting tables, dispensing and mixing drinks, taking money, greeting and seating guests — or cooking breakfasts and snacks. |
| Level 3 | $27.97 | $1062.90 | Trained waiter · Cook gr 2 · Kitchen supervisor (gr 3) · Handyperson | Trained to the appropriate level: full food-and-liquor waiting, helping train and supervise juniors, trained (non-trade) cooking duties, or routine maintenance. |
| Level 4 (trade) | $29.45 | $1119.10 | Commi chef (Cook gr 3) · Fine-dining waiter (tradesperson) · Clerical gr 3 | Trade-qualified: a cook who has completed an apprenticeship or trade test, or a waiter carrying out specialised skilled duties in a fine dining room. The award’s “standard rate”. |
| Level 5 | $31.30 | $1189.40 | Demi chef (Cook gr 4) · Food and beverage supervisor · Clerical supervisor | Supervisory training plus real responsibility: co-ordinating food and beverage staff, bar stock control, or specialised cooking while training other cooks. |
| Level 6 | $32.13 | $1221.10 | Chef de partie (Cook gr 5) | The top level: a chef de partie or equivalent — specialised cooking plus supervising kitchen staff, ordering and stock control, or running a single-kitchen operation. |
- Introductory level is temporary by design — up to 3 months (6 by mutual agreement) while a new entrant trains toward Level 1 competency, then they move up.
- “Appropriate level of training” is what separates a Level 2 waiter from a Level 3 one — often the same duties, different training. Once trained, the level follows.
- Trade qualifications set the floor at Level 4: a commi chef with an apprenticeship or trade test can’t be paid below the Level 4 rate.
- Juniors serving liquor must be paid adult rates, and under-18s can’t be rostered more than 10 hours a shift.
Allowances that can apply on top
Base rates and penalties aren’t the whole pay picture. The Restaurant 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 Restaurant 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 Restaurant Award requires:
With no rostered break time, the 50% penalty starts 6 hours after the shift begins. The full rules live in clause 16 of the award.
Calculate a week under the Restaurant 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, MA000119) — 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 classification minimums are the adult rates from the award (Table 3), current at 1 July 2026. Junior rates (50% under 17 up to 100% at 20) and apprentice rates differ, and annualised wage arrangements have their own rules. Treat the result as a planning number and confirm against the award or your payroll adviser.
Why is the late-night penalty in dollars, not a percentage?
Because that’s how the Restaurant Award writes it: work between 10pm and midnight adds a flat $2.95 per hour, and midnight to 6am adds $4.42 per hour, on top of the ordinary rate. Generic calculators tend to miss flat additions — over a year of dinner service they’re real money.
When does overtime start?
Beyond 38 ordinary hours a week (averaged over up to 4 weeks), or outside the daily limits — 11.5 ordinary hours maximum. Monday to Friday it’s 150% for the first 2 hours and 200% after — note the 2-hour first tier, shorter than most awards. Saturday overtime starts higher, at 175%.
Does super apply to penalty rates?
Yes — weekend and late-night penalties on ordinary hours are ordinary-time earnings, so the 12% super guarantee applies. True overtime is excluded. The calculator applies exactly that split.
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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Tommy applies the right award rates to every shift as you roster — penalties, loading and super included. Start with your email and your numbers come along.
