General Retail Industry Award 2020 — Rights, Pay and Entitlements Explained (2026)

Introduction

The General Retail Industry Award 2020 (MA000004) is one of Australia's most significant modern awards, setting legally enforceable minimum pay rates and working conditions for workers across the retail sector. Administered by the Fair Work Commission (FWC), it covers an estimated 1.3 million workers — making it one of the largest awards by coverage in the national award system.

The award applies to employers and employees in the general retail industry throughout Australia. It governs everything from hourly pay rates and penalty rates to annual leave loading, redundancy entitlements, and superannuation. Whether you work in a large department store, a local grocery, a furniture retailer, or a bakery, this award likely sets your minimum legal entitlements.

The pay rates in this guide reflect the 2025–26 financial year, following the Fair Work Commission's Annual Wage Review effective from 1 July 2025. The current National Minimum Wage and all award minimums were increased by the FWC's Annual Wage Review determination — all figures here are stamped as of 2025–26.

If you work in retail or employ retail staff, understanding this award is essential to ensuring legal compliance and knowing your rights.

Who Does the Award Cover?

The General Retail Industry Award 2020 covers employers in the general retail industry and employees within the classifications defined in Schedule A of the award.

Covered industries include:

• Clothing and footwear retail
• Food retail (supermarkets, convenience stores, delicatessens)
• Furniture and homewares retail
• Electronics and personal/recreational goods retail
• Bakery retail (retail bakery operations)
• Repair services associated with retail
• Customer service and checkout operations
• Newspaper and magazine delivery

Key exclusions — the following industries are covered by separate awards and are NOT covered by this award:

• Pharmacies (Pharmacy Industry Award)
• Hair and beauty salons (Hair and Beauty Industry Award)
• Butcher shops (Meat Industry Award)
• Plant nurseries (Nursery Award)
• Motor vehicle dealers and repairers (Vehicle Manufacturing, Repair, Services and Retail Award)
• Hospitality venues (Hospitality Industry Award)
• Construction and installation contractors

Pay Structure — Classification Levels and Current Rates

The award establishes eight retail employee classification levels (Grade 1 through Grade 8), based on duties performed, skills required, and level of responsibility. The following rates apply from 1 July 2025 (2025–26 financial year):

Classification Level	Hourly Rate (AUD)	Weekly Rate (38 hrs, AUD)
Retail Employee Level 1	$26.55	$1,008.90
Retail Employee Level 2	$27.16	$1,032.08
Retail Employee Level 3	$27.58	$1,048.04
Retail Employee Level 4	$28.12	$1,068.56
Retail Employee Level 5	$29.27	$1,112.26
Retail Employee Level 6	$29.70	$1,128.60
Retail Employee Level 7	$31.19	$1,185.22
Retail Employee Level 8	$32.45	$1,233.10

Level 1 applies to entry-level retail employees within their first three months. Level 2 applies once the introductory period is complete or if the employee has prior relevant experience. Higher levels reflect increasing duties — team leader responsibilities, specialised knowledge (e.g. electronics, home appliances), supervisory functions, and store management.

These rates are the minimum legal rates. Employers may pay more. Any enterprise agreement or individual employment contract that provides for higher pay takes precedence; lower pay is unlawful.

Annual Wage Review Increases

The FWC conducts an Annual Wage Review each year, typically taking effect from 1 July. These increases apply automatically to all modern award minimum rates. Always confirm current rates with the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) pay calculator or your award document, particularly after 1 July each year.

Working Hours, Overtime, and Penalty Rates

Ordinary Hours

A full-time retail employee works 38 ordinary hours per week under the award. A standard span of hours applies — typically 7:00 am to 9:00 pm Monday through Friday, and specified times on weekends.

Casual Loading

Casual employees receive a 25% loading on top of the applicable minimum hourly rate. This loading compensates for the lack of leave entitlements, paid personal leave, and job security. Under the Fair Work Act 2009, s.67B (inserted from 26 August 2022), the casual loading is set at 25% of the ordinary time rate.

A Level 1 casual employee would receive: $26.55 × 1.25 = $33.19/hour as their minimum ordinary time casual rate.

Penalty Rates

The award specifies penalty rates when work is performed outside ordinary hours or on weekends and public holidays. For full-time and part-time employees:

Day / Time	Penalty Rate
Monday–Friday ordinary hours	100% (ordinary rate)
Saturday	125%
Sunday	200%
Public holidays	225%

For casual employees (inclusive of the 25% casual loading):

Day / Time	Rate (inclusive of casual loading)
Monday–Friday	125%
Saturday	150%
Sunday	225%
Public holidays	250%

Overtime

Overtime applies to full-time employees working beyond 38 ordinary hours per week (or the agreed daily spread). Standard overtime rates under the award are:

• First 3 hours of overtime: 150% of ordinary time rate
• Beyond 3 hours: 200% of ordinary time rate

Part-time employees who work beyond their guaranteed contracted hours are generally entitled to overtime rates under the award.

Annual Leave

NES Entitlement

Under the National Employment Standards (NES), full-time retail employees are entitled to 4 weeks (20 days) of paid annual leave per year of continuous service, accruing progressively throughout the year (Fair Work Act 2009 s.87).

Shiftworkers who regularly work on Sundays or public holidays as part of their normal pattern of work may be entitled to 5 weeks' annual leave under the award.

Part-time employees accrue annual leave on a pro-rata basis proportional to their contracted hours.

Annual Leave Loading

A key entitlement under the General Retail Industry Award 2020 is the annual leave loading of 17.5% of the ordinary time rate, applied when employees take annual leave. This loading compensates workers for forgoing penalty rates and shift allowances they would otherwise have earned.

In practice:

• A Level 1 employee on $26.55/hour taking annual leave receives a leave loading of: $26.55 × 17.5% = $4.65/hour additional
• Weekly leave loading: $26.55 × 38 × 17.5% = $176.56 extra per week of leave

Some awards and agreements apply the higher of 17.5% or the weekend/shift penalty rates. Employees should check with their employer or the FWO for their specific entitlement.

Leave Accrual

Annual leave accrues at a rate of:

• 1.538 hours per week for a full-time employee (38 hrs/week)
• 0.3846 hours per fortnight per contracted hour for part-time employees

Employees can also request to cash out accrued annual leave above 4 weeks (with employer agreement), subject to written agreement requirements under the Fair Work Act 2009 s.94.

Notice Period

Employer Notice of Termination

Under the Fair Work Act 2009 s.117 (the NES minimum), employers must provide the following minimum notice before terminating employment:

Years of Continuous Service	Minimum Notice
Less than 1 year	1 week
1 year to less than 3 years	2 weeks
3 years to less than 5 years	3 weeks
5 years or more	4 weeks

Additional week: If an employee is over 45 years of age and has completed at least 2 years of continuous service, they are entitled to an additional 1 week of notice (NES s.117(3)).

Employers may elect to pay out notice rather than require the employee to work the notice period — this is known as payment in lieu of notice.

The General Retail Industry Award 2020 includes its own notice period table (Table 13) in clause 37.1, which generally aligns with or exceeds NES minimums. Employees should verify their specific notice entitlements in the current award document.

Employee Resignation Notice

Employees who resign are generally required to provide the same notice periods as above, though failure to do so may result in forfeiture of entitlements in some circumstances. The award or employment contract may specify the required resignation notice period.

Redundancy Pay

NES Genuine Redundancy

If your position is made redundant — meaning the employer no longer requires the work to be done and has complied with consultation obligations — you may be entitled to genuine redundancy pay under Fair Work Act 2009 s.119 and Schedule 4 (NES redundancy scale):

Years of Continuous Service	Weeks of Redundancy Pay
1 year	4 weeks
2 years	6 weeks
3 years	7 weeks
4 years	8 weeks
5 years	10 weeks
6 years	11 weeks
7 years	13 weeks
8 years	14 weeks
9 years	16 weeks
10 years or more	12 weeks (capped)

Note the cap at 10+ years: the NES caps redundancy pay at 12 weeks (Fair Work Act Sch 4 s.119). Some enterprise agreements provide for higher redundancy pay — check your agreement.

Small Business Exemption

Small business employers (defined as having fewer than 15 employees) are exempt from NES redundancy pay obligations under the Fair Work Act 2009 s.121. Employees of small retail businesses may not receive redundancy pay upon genuine redundancy.

Tax Treatment

Genuine redundancy payments up to a certain threshold are tax-free. For 2025–26, the tax-free amount is AUD $12,524 plus AUD $6,264 per completed year of service. Amounts above this threshold are treated as employment termination payments (ETPs) with concessional tax treatment.

Award Redundancy Provisions

The General Retail Industry Award 2020 includes redundancy consultation requirements (clause 38) that employers must follow before making roles redundant. These include notifying employees, consulting about the decision, and considering redeployment alternatives. Failure to follow these consultation obligations can affect the characterisation of the redundancy.

Superannuation

Under the Superannuation Guarantee (Administration) Act 1992, employers must contribute a minimum percentage of an employee's ordinary time earnings to a complying superannuation fund. From 1 July 2025, the rate is:

Superannuation Guarantee (SG) rate: 12.0% from 1 July 2025

This means for a Level 1 full-time employee:

• Annual ordinary time earnings: $26.55 × 38 × 52 = $52,462.80
• Employer SG contribution: $52,462.80 × 12% = $6,295.54/year

Key points:

• The SG contribution is in addition to, not deducted from, the employee's gross wage
• Contributions must be made to a complying super fund at least quarterly
• Employees have the right to choose their own super fund under Fair Work Act s.149A (Choice of Fund), as long as it is a complying fund
• The concessional contributions cap for 2025–26 is $30,000/year (including employer SG contributions)
• Casual employees are entitled to SG contributions from the first dollar earned (the AUD $450/month threshold was removed from 1 July 2022)

The General Retail Industry Award 2020 does not provide super contributions above the statutory SG rate. The standard 12% SG applies.

Your Rights at Work

Unfair Dismissal

Retail employees who believe they have been unfairly dismissed may apply to the Fair Work Commission for an unfair dismissal remedy under the Fair Work Act 2009 Part 2-2. The minimum employment period before an unfair dismissal application can be made is:

• 6 months for employees of regular (non-small) businesses
• 12 months for employees of small businesses (fewer than 15 employees)

Applications must be lodged within 21 days of dismissal taking effect.

General Protections (Adverse Action)

The Fair Work Act 2009 Part 3-1 prohibits employers from taking adverse action against employees for exercising a workplace right, making a complaint, or engaging in lawful industrial activity. These protections apply from day one of employment — no minimum period applies.

Right of Entry

Union representatives with a right of entry permit under the Fair Work Act 2009 Part 3-4 may enter retail workplaces to hold discussions with employees or investigate potential award breaches.

Workplace Health and Safety

All retail employees have rights and responsibilities under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Cth) — or equivalent state WHS legislation. Employers must provide a safe working environment; employees have the right to refuse unsafe work.

National Employment Standards (NES)

All retail employees are entitled to the full 11 NES entitlements regardless of the award, including flexible working arrangements requests, parental leave, community service leave, and access to the Fair Work Information Statement upon commencement.

Disclaimer

This article is for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Pay rates and entitlements are based on the General Retail Industry Award 2020 (MA000004) and Australian statutory rates as of 2025–26. For questions about your specific employment situation, contact your union, the Fair Work Ombudsman (1300 724 690) or a qualified employment lawyer.