The Fair Work Commission's annual wage decision took effect on 1 July 2026, and with it came updated minimum rates for the Hospitality Industry Award 2020. If you employ cooks, servers, bartenders, or front-of-house staff under this award, you need to know what's changed.
What's changed in 2026
The 3.5% minimum rate increase applies to all base pay rates in the Hospitality Award. But rates are only part of the story — penalty loadings for unsociable hours also shifted slightly for some employment categories.
The key figures every hospitality employer should know:
- Minimum hourly rate (Level 1, non-casual): $24.93/hr — up from $24.09
- Saturday afternoon/evening loading: 50% (unchanged)
- Sunday loading: 75% (unchanged)
- Public holiday loading: 150% (unchanged, but now referenced against the new base rate)
Who this affects
If your employees are classified under the Hospitality Award, these new rates apply from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026. This includes hotels, clubs, restaurants, cafes, and catering businesses — anywhere food and/or beverage is served.
The increase matters most for businesses that rely heavily on casual workers, where the base rate increase compounds with the 25% casual loading. A casual server working Sunday afternoons now costs significantly more per hour than they did 12 months ago.
How AwardChecker helps
AwardChecker validates your timesheet data against the current Hospitality Award minimums, automatically applying the correct rate for each employee's classification level and the relevant penalty loadings for day, time, and public holidays. Any row that falls below the minimum triggers a compliance flag — before your next BAS or audit.
If you're using a payroll system like Xero or MYOB, you can import timesheets directly and catch underpayments before they reach your employees' payslips.
What to do this week
Review your upcoming payroll runs against the new rates. Check any timesheets already approved in your payroll system — the approved entries can't be pushed back from Xero, so identify shortfalls manually. Then upload your next cycle's timesheet through AwardChecker to confirm compliance before you process it.