08/09/2026
Does a SCHADS Award employee automatically move up a pay point every year?
It's a question I've been asked recently.
And the answer is not necessarily.
Pay point progression under the SCHADS Award isn't simply an automatic annual pay increase because an employee has completed another year of service.
The wording in the Award is important.
After 12 months of continuous employment, an employee becomes "eligible" to progress to the next pay point where they have demonstrated competency and satisfactory performance at that classification.
Depending on your workplace, there are also requirements around new or enhanced skills and/or your performance appraisal process.
So rather than simply increasing the pay point every anniversary — or leaving someone on the same pay point indefinitely — it's important to have a process for reviewing it if you pay under the SCHADS Award.
That might look something like:
📅 Employee reaches 12 months at their level/pay point
→ Check their current classification and pay point
→ Review competency and performance over the previous 12 months
→ Consider any applicable skills or performance review requirements
→ Document the outcome
→ Progress them to the next pay point where the Award criteria are met
If you have SCHADS-covered employees and you're unsure whether they're classified and paid correctly, it's worth checking rather than assuming.
