McInnes Wilson recently acted for the Queensland Council of Parents and Citizens Associations (P&Cs Qld) in its application for the variation of a modern award (decision available here).
P&Cs Qld brought the application to provide access to wage increase grant funding to its 1,266 member associations under the federal Early Childhood Worker Retention Payment scheme (which we discuss in our previous article).
Under the grant funding scheme’s eligibility criteria, workers were required to be engaged through a ‘recognised workplace instrument’ (such as an Award or Enterprise Agreement).
The Application sought a variation to the Parents and Citizens Associations Award – State 2016 (Qld) by inserting a wage increase provision designed to bring the State Award in line with the grant requirements of the Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) Worker Retention Payment. This was achieved by setting out wage increases for Outside Hours School Care (OHSC) workers in accordance with their Award classification level.
The application was granted by the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission, and variations to the award took effect, on 14 March 2025.
Overall, the variation has the effect of enabling employers to provide subsidised wage increases to eligible OHSC employees through the grant funding scheme, rectifying the financial disadvantage which currently exists between employees covered by the State Award and employees covered by the federal Children’s Services Award 2010.
how can mCINNES WILSON help?
If your organisation requires assistance accessing the Early Childhood Worker Retention Payment scheme, our Employment and Education teams at McInnes Wilson are available to help you understand the terms and requirements, and identify any changes you may need to make (or agree to make) to participate in the scheme.
If you are interested in receiving more information, please contact one of our team members on:
- James Christensen jchristensen@mcw.com.au | T:(07) 3231 0683
- John Hamilton jhamilton@mcw.com.au | T:(07) 3231 0623
- Ryan Murphy rmurphy@mcw.com.au | T:(02) 6185 7706
- Seone Woolf swoolf@mcw.com.au | T:(07) 3231 0617
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