A standalone restaurant or cafe in Australia is covered by the Restaurant Industry Award MA000119, not the Hospitality Industry (General) Award MA000009, which covers hotels, clubs, caterers and any restaurant operating inside one of them. Skai Solutions works with venues on all three hospitality awards, and the difference that costs the most is not the base rate, it is that the hospitality award starts paying an evening loading at 7pm while the restaurant award waits until 10pm.
Coverage is decided by clause 4 of each award, and clause 4 is about the premises and the business, not about the food. The three awards in play are MA000119 for restaurants and cafes, MA000009 for hotels and accommodation, and MA000003 for fast food. Getting it wrong is the most common and most expensive payroll mistake in Australian hospitality, and the figures below were read straight off the award texts on 7 September 2026.
Clause 4.2 of the award defines the restaurant industry as restaurants, reception centres, night clubs, cafes or roadhouses. It also pulls in catering done by a restaurant business, and a tea room operated in or in connection with one. Read that list slowly, because two things in it surprise people: a night club is on the restaurant award, and a cafe is too. There is no separate cafe award in Australia.
The same clause then carves out the venues that belong somewhere else. A restaurant operated in, or in connection with, premises run by an employer covered by the Hospitality Industry (General) Award MA000009, the Registered and Licensed Clubs Award, or the Fast Food Industry Award MA000003 is not on MA000119. Clause 4.4 adds the rest of the exclusions: contract caterers whose principal business is catering, retail, in flight catering, aged care catering, boarding schools and residential colleges, hospitals, and hotels, motels, hostels and boarding establishments.
One line that catches labour hire: clause 4.3 puts on hire employees working in the restaurant industry, and the agency that supplies them, on this award too. Bringing in an agency chef does not move you onto a different instrument, and it is why the award floor sits underneath every quote you get. We have priced that floor in agency chef rates in Australia.
The Hospitality Award covers premises, not menus. Clause 4.2 of MA000009 lists hotels, motor inns and motels, boarding establishments, private hotels, guest houses and serviced apartments, caravan parks, ski lodges, hostels and other tourist accommodation, wine saloons, wine bars and taverns, liquor booths, resorts, caterers, casinos, and restaurants operating in, or in connection with, any of those. Function and convention areas attached to them are covered as well.
So the test is not what you serve. Two kitchens can cook the same dish on the same street and sit on different awards because one of them is inside a pub. If your dining room is part of a hotel, motel or accommodation business, you are on MA000009. If it stands alone, you are on MA000119.
MA000003 defines the fast food industry as taking orders for, preparing and selling meals, snacks or beverages sold to the public primarily to be consumed away from the point of sale, or packaged so they can be taken away, or sold in food courts, shopping centres and retail complexes. The last of those has its own carve out, and it is the one operators miss: food court trading is fast food excluding coffee shops, cafes, bars and restaurants that provide primarily a sit down service inside the establishment.
A cafe with tables in a shopping centre is therefore usually on the restaurant award, not the fast food one, even though its neighbours in the same food court are not. If most of your trade walks out the door with a bag, look at MA000003 properly. Our page on the phone ordering side of takeaway trade covers what that shape of business does to the phone.
At the bottom of the scale, less than people assume. Verified against all three award texts on 7 September 2026, the base rates that apply from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026 are identical between the restaurant and hospitality awards: Introductory A$978.10 a week, Level 1 A$1,004.90, Level 2 A$1,029.10, Level 3 A$1,062.90. Nobody is paying less by being on one rather than the other.
The fast food award is the outlier, and not in the direction most people guess.
| Entry classification | Weekly | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| Restaurant Award MA000119, Level 1 | A$1,004.90 | A$26.44 |
| Hospitality Award MA000009, Level 1 | A$1,004.90 | A$26.44 |
| Fast Food Award MA000003, Level 1 | A$1,056.80 | A$27.81 |
Fast food entry level pays more than restaurant entry level, and more than restaurant Level 2. A$27.81 against A$26.44 is A$1.37 an hour, A$51.90 a week, and about A$2,698.80 a year for one full time employee. If you have been calling your takeaway shop a fast food business out of habit, that habit has a price attached to it.
These are the adult full time and part time rates in the Fair Work Ombudsman's pay guide for MA000119, published 24 June 2026 and applying from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2026. A casual is the hourly rate plus the 25% casual loading, but casual weekend and public holiday rates are set separately in the award, so never build them by stacking the loading on top of the penalty.
| Level | Weekly | Hourly | Saturday | Sunday | Public holiday |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Introductory | A$978.10 | A$25.74 | A$32.18 | A$38.61 | A$57.92 |
| Level 1, food and beverage attendant grade 1 | A$1,004.90 | A$26.44 | A$33.05 | A$39.66 | A$59.49 |
| Level 2, f&b grade 2, cook grade 1 | A$1,029.10 | A$27.08 | A$33.85 | A$40.62 | A$60.93 |
| Level 3, f&b grade 3, cook grade 2 | A$1,062.90 | A$27.97 | A$34.96 | A$41.96 | A$62.93 |
| Level 4, tradesperson | A$1,119.10 | A$29.45 | A$36.81 | A$44.18 | A$66.26 |
| Level 5, f&b supervisor, cook grade 4 | A$1,189.40 | A$31.30 | A$39.13 | A$46.95 | A$70.43 |
| Level 6, cook grade 5 | A$1,221.10 | A$32.13 | A$40.16 | A$48.20 | A$72.29 |
Fair Work Ombudsman pay guide for the Restaurant Industry Award MA000119, published 24 June 2026. Late night loading on ordinary hours Monday to Friday adds A$2.95 an hour from 10pm to midnight and A$4.42 an hour from midnight to 6am, and it applies to part of an hour.
One line to save an argument, because it is the thing operators most often get wrong when they discover they are on the wrong award. At Introductory, Level 1 and Level 2 the weekly base rates under the Restaurant Industry Award and the Hospitality Industry (General) Award are identical as at 1 July 2026: A$978.10, A$1,004.90 and A$1,029.10. Being on the wrong award does not usually mean you underpaid the base rate. It means the classifications and the penalties diverge above Level 2, and that is where the money is. The hospitality award pay levels page works through which level a given job actually sits on.
The table above is full time and part time. A casual on the Restaurant Industry Award is a different set of numbers, because the 25% casual loading is not simply added on top of a penalty rate. The award sets casual weekend and public holiday rates separately, and at Introductory to Level 2 the Sunday casual rate is lower than most operators assume.
| Level | Casual ordinary (125%) | Casual Saturday (150%) | Casual Sunday | Casual public holiday (250%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Introductory | A$32.18 | A$38.61 | A$38.61 (150%) | A$64.35 |
| Level 1, f&b grade 1 | A$33.05 | A$39.66 | A$39.66 (150%) | A$66.10 |
| Level 2, f&b grade 2, cook grade 1 | A$33.85 | A$40.62 | A$40.62 (150%) | A$67.70 |
| Level 3, f&b grade 3, cook grade 2 | A$34.96 | A$41.96 | A$48.95 (175%) | A$69.93 |
| Level 4, tradesperson | A$36.81 | A$44.18 | A$51.54 (175%) | A$73.63 |
| Level 5, f&b supervisor, cook grade 4 | A$39.13 | A$46.95 | A$54.78 (175%) | A$78.25 |
| Level 6, cook grade 5 | A$40.16 | A$48.20 | A$56.23 (175%) | A$70.29 |
Calculated from the MA000119 minimum hourly rates in the table above at the percentages in clause 24 of the Restaurant Industry Award, read 7 September 2026. The Sunday split at Level 3 is the award's own, not a rounding artefact.
The line that costs money: under the Restaurant Industry Award a casual at Introductory, Level 1 or Level 2 is on 150% on a Sunday, which is the same rate a permanent gets. Under the Hospitality Industry (General) Award the same casual is on 175%. At Level 2 that is A$40.62 against A$47.39, a gap of A$6.77 an hour, or A$54.16 across one eight hour Sunday shift per person. On a five person Sunday it is A$270 a week, about A$14,000 a year. That gap exists only because of which award the venue sits on, and the hospitality award rates are the other side of it.
It turns on service, not on menu. MA000003, the Fast Food Award, covers food and drink sold primarily to be consumed away from the point of sale, takeaway packaged to leave, and food courts in shopping centres. It expressly excludes coffee shops, cafes, bars and restaurants providing primarily a sit down service inside the establishment. A cafe with tables is on the Restaurant Industry Award. A counter in a shopping centre food court is not.
This matters more than operators expect, because the Fast Food Award is the more expensive one at entry level. Fast food employee level 1 is A$1,056.80 a week and A$27.81 an hour from 1 July 2026, against A$1,004.90 and A$26.44 for restaurant Level 1. That is A$1.37 an hour, A$51.90 a week, and A$2,698.80 a year for one full timer. Fast food level 2 matches restaurant Level 4 exactly at A$1,119.10.
Rates read from the award texts at MA000003 and MA000119 on 7 September 2026, as varied to apply from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026. Coverage questions are not settled by a table. Check with the Fair Work Ombudsman or an adviser before you change anyone's award.
If you are working out which level a person sits on rather than which award the venue sits on, that is on the award pay levels page, and the 25% loading itself is on casual loading in hospitality.
The base rate is where people look. The penalty tables are where the money actually moves, and the awards diverge on two points there and two more outside them.
The evening loading starts three hours earlier on the hospitality award. A restaurant on MA000119 pays an extra A$2.95 an hour only from 10pm, and A$4.42 from midnight. A hotel bistro on MA000009 starts paying that same A$2.95 at 7pm. On a 7pm to 11pm dinner shift that is three extra loaded hours, A$8.85 per person per night, which on four staff five nights a week is about A$177 a week the standalone restaurant next door never pays.
Sunday casuals split. On the restaurant award a casual at Introductory to Level 2 is paid 150% on a Sunday. On the hospitality award every casual is on 175%. At the Level 2 rate that is A$40.62 an hour against A$47.39, a gap of A$6.77 an hour, or A$54.16 across an eight hour Sunday shift for one person. Note the other half of that: on MA000119 a Sunday casual at Level 2 costs exactly the same as a permanent, because both land on 150%.
| Ordinary hours | Restaurant MA000119 | Hospitality MA000009 |
|---|---|---|
| Evening loading starts | 10pm | 7pm |
| Saturday, permanent / casual | 125% / 150% | 125% / 150% |
| Sunday, permanent | 150% | 150% |
| Sunday, casual at Level 1 to 2 | 150% | 175% |
| Public holiday, permanent / casual | 225% / 250% | 225% / 250% |
| Annual leave loading | flat 17.5% | flat 17.5% |
| Junior reaches full adult pay at | 20 | 20 |
Read from the award texts at MA000119 clause 24 and MA000009 clause 29 on 7 September 2026, both as varied to apply from 1 July 2026. Full rate tables are on our page covering hospitality award rates in Australia, and the classification ladder is set out under hospitality award pay levels.
And two more the penalty tables do not show. Both awards pay a flat 17.5% annual leave loading, and both say inside the clause that it covers untaken leave when someone leaves. The Fast Food Award does neither: its loading is the greater of 17.5% or the weekend penalty amounts, which on a Sunday heavy roster is the larger number. Annual leave loading across the three awards runs the arithmetic. Juniors split the same way. A restaurant or a hotel bistro pays full adult rate from 20; a fast food shop not until 21, so the same 20 year old is A$26.44 an hour on one award and A$25.03 on another. The junior tables are set out here.
Fifteen minutes, your venue, and the calls that land while the floor is full.
Book a Free DemoUnderpayment is recoverable for six years, and since 1 January 2025 intentional underpayment of wages can be a criminal offence in Australia. The practical exposure for a small venue is not a prosecution, it is a back pay bill that arrives with interest and superannuation attached, and it compounds quietly because it applies to every affected shift.
A single full time employee paid at Level 1 when the work is Level 3 is short A$58.00 a week, which is A$3,016.00 a year. Multiply that by a floor team and by however many years it has been running. If you think you are on the wrong instrument, the order of work is: read clause 4 of the award you think you are on, read clause 4 of the one you might belong to, then check your classifications against Schedule A. An enterprise agreement, if you have one, overrides the award and this whole page.
Rates change every 1 July, so any figure you find without a date on it is a claim about the past. For a specific person, junior rate, apprentice, overtime band or split shift, use the Fair Work Pay and Conditions Tool rather than a page like this one, including ours.
Award coverage is national. BYO licensing is not: New South Wales requires no licence at all, Victoria charges A$345.40 and asks for eleven weeks notice, and Queensland leaves it to your council. If your dining room is unlicensed, the position for your state is in do you need a BYO licence in Australia.
Award coverage decides what an hour of floor time costs, and that is the number that makes phone handling a budget question rather than a habit. On the restaurant award a casual Level 2 is A$33.85 an hour. Forty minutes a day of phone time across seven days trading is about A$687 a month of that rate spent standing at a handset, and none of it is spent at a table.
That is the arithmetic behind everything else on this site. Skai Solutions sells an AI receptionist that takes the calls instead, and setup is five days. It is not the only answer. If your phone mostly carries supplier calls, a message taking plan is cheaper and it is not us. Our page on the cheapest way to answer the restaurant phone prices the options honestly, including the free ones.
This page summarises published award text and is general information, not legal or industrial relations advice.
Licensed and unlicensed venues also carry different training obligations. RSA certificate cost in Australia covers which staff need one, the state by state expiry, and the one word on the certificate that decides whether it is valid.
One practical difference worth knowing before you choose: the fixed laundry figures live in the hospitality award and not the restaurant one. See the laundry allowance under each award.
A standalone cafe is covered by the Restaurant Industry Award MA000119. Clause 4.2 names cafes directly. There is no separate cafe award. A cafe inside a hotel, motel or accommodation business is on the Hospitality Industry (General) Award MA000009 instead.
Usually not. MA000003 covers food court and shopping centre trading but expressly excludes coffee shops, cafes, bars and restaurants providing primarily a sit down service inside the establishment. If your customers sit down with you, look at MA000119 first.
The award of the industry they are working in. Clause 4.3 of MA000119 covers on hire employees working in the restaurant industry and the on hire employer that supplies them, and MA000009 and MA000003 carry the same provision for their industries.
Five days from sign up to live calls with Skai Solutions. You keep your number, calls divert to the agent, and the divert can run during service only, after hours only, or all the time.
More: roster rules under the restaurant award, how casual loading works, or what labour should cost as a percentage of turnover.