Broadcasting and Recorded Entertainment Award.
Broadcasting, Recorded Entertainment and Cinemas Award 2020. Verified penalty rates, shift loadings, leave loading and RDO arrangements, with a live calculator under the NES.
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| Component | Formula | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Accrual rate (FULL-TIME) | 4 wks × 38h ÷ 52 | 2.923 hrs/wk |
| Hours accrued | 2.923 × 52 wks | 152.42 hrs |
| Hourly base rate | - | $35.00 |
| Base leave value | 152.42 × $35.00 | $5,334.62 |
| 17.5% leave loading | base × 0.175 | + $933.56 |
| Total payout | - | $6,268.17 |
Disclaimer: This tool does not constitute legal or financial advice. Results may be inaccurate due to changes in legislation or your circumstances. This tool does not constitute legal or financial advice. We do not recommend taking actions based solely on these results. The calculator makes assumptions and results may be inaccurate due to changes in legislation, modern awards, or your personal circumstances. You use this information at your own risk. We can't guarantee to be perfect, so do note you use the information at your own risk and we can't accept liability if things go wrong. For official guidance, visit Fair Work Ombudsman (fairwork.gov.au). Fair Work Ombudsman.
Broadcasting and Recorded Entertainment Award pay rates and penalties.
Dollar rates effective from 1 July 2026 after the 4.75% Annual Wage Review increase. Penalty rates verified against the MA000091 award text.
Penalty rates by shift type
What each hour is worth as a percentage of the base rate, for permanent and casual employees.
Hourly rate by classification level
34 levels, measured from $0 so the gaps between them are true to scale.
Grey bars fall below the adult national minimum wage. Junior and apprentice classifications are lawfully paid a set percentage of the adult rate under this award.
- Grade 1Grade 1 (no job titles sit here; the rate is the base for adult cadet rates, clause 13.7)
- Grade 2Grade 2 (Motion Picture Production Employee Level 1)
- Grade 3Grade 3 (Motion Picture Production Employee Level 2)
- Grade 4Grade 4 (trainee, assistant technician, wardrobe assistant, radio broadcast operator)
- Grade 5Grade 5 (Technician B, Camera Operator B, hair or makeup artist, radio technician; the award standard rate)
- Grade 6Grade 6
- Grade 7Grade 7 (Technician A, Camera Operator A, floor manager, Announcer Class 2)
- Grade 8Grade 8 (Editor A, trainee director, captioner or audio describer, Announcer Grade 1)
- Grade 9Grade 9 (director, floor manager major production)
- Grade 10Grade 10 (presentation co-ordinator, radio engineer)
- Grade 11Grade 11 (post-production Editor A, ENG Camera Operator A, radio chief engineer)
- Grade 12Grade 12 (senior director, senior ENG camera operator)
- Grade 13Grade 13
- Grade 14Grade 14
- Grade 15Grade 15
- Grade 16Grade 16 (supervising technician A+, supervising director)
- Grade 17Grade 17 (Motion Picture Production Employee Level 9)
- Grade 18Grade 18 (Motion Picture Production Employee Level 10)
- Cinema L1Cinema Worker Level 1 (base $1,004.90 plus $80.39 penalty averaging)
- Cinema L2Cinema Worker Level 2 (base $1,029.10 plus $82.33 penalty averaging)
- Cinema L3Cinema Worker Level 3 (base $1,062.90 plus $85.03 penalty averaging)
- Cinema L4Cinema Worker Level 4 (base $1,119.10 plus $89.53 penalty averaging)
- Cinema L5Cinema Worker Level 5 (base $1,189.40 plus $95.15 penalty averaging)
- Cinema L6Cinema Worker Level 6 (base $1,221.10 plus $97.69 penalty averaging)
- Cinema L7Cinema Worker Level 7 (base $1,255.40 plus $100.43 penalty averaging)
- Zone ManagerCinema Zone Manager (base $1,255.40 plus $100.43 penalty averaging)
- Journalist G1Journalist Grade 1, Band 1 (the base for cadet rates: 60%, 75% and 90% in years 1 to 3)
- Journalist G2Journalist Grade 2, Band 1
- Journalist G3Journalist Grade 3, Band 1
- Journalist G4Journalist Grade 4, Band 1
- Journalist G5Journalist Grade 5, Band 2
- Journalist G6Journalist Grade 6, Band 2
- Journalist G7Journalist Grade 7, Band 2
- Journalist G8Journalist Grade 8, Band 3
National Minimum Wage, 4-year trend
Lifted each year by the Annual Wage Review. Up 23.7% since FY2023. Percentages are the movement in the NMW itself, which exceeded the award increase in the years the Commission realigned it to the C13 rate.
Where these numbers come from
- Dollar rates
- FWO Pay Guides and FWC Annual Wage Review [2026] FWCFB 3500, effective 1 July 2026.
- Penalty rates and allowances
- MA000091 on awards.fairwork.gov.au, the official award text.
- Your own figures
- Check your classification in the FWO Pay Calculator.
Penalty rates in full
Every loading in the award, side by side for full-time, part-time and casual employees.
| Hours worked | Full-time / part-time | Casual (incl. loading) |
|---|---|---|
| Ordinary hours | 100% | 125% |
| Saturday | 150% | See notes |
| Sunday | 175% | See notes |
| Public holiday | 250% | See notes |
| Evening, TV shift duty allowance 15%, or 20% for ordinary hours midnight-6am | 115% | See notes |
| Night shift | 120% | See notes |
This award combines casual loading differently depending on the penalty. Some casual penalties substitute for the full-time rate rather than adding to it, so the casual column cannot be derived by adding 25% across the board. The stream detail below and the coverage notes give the specific rates.
This award does not pay one set of rates. The table above is the stream covering most employees. These streams differ:
| Stream | Saturday | Sunday | Public holiday | Leave loading |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Radio announcers and broadcaster/journalists (Announcer Grade 1, Announcer Class 2, Broadcaster/Journalist Class 1 and 2) | 100% | 200% | 250% | 17.5% |
| Radio technical staff (Broadcast operator, Technician, Engineer, Chief Engineer) | 175% | 200% | 250% | 17.5% |
| Journalists (Journalist Grades 1 to 8 and cadets) | 100% | 100% | 100% | 17.5% |
| Cinema workers (Cinema Worker Levels 1 to 7 and Zone Manager) | 100% | 100% | 200% | 17.5% |
| Artists and performers (Extra, Stand-In, Double, Bit Player, Performer Class 1 and 2) | 125% | 200% | 250% | 17.5% |
| Musicians and session singers | 100% | 200% | 200% | 17.5% |
| Motion picture production (Motion Picture Production Employee Levels 1 to 10) | 100% | 200% | 250% | 17.5% |
- Radio announcers and broadcaster/journalists: Clauses 44.1 and 44.2(a). Sunday and public holiday each carry a minimum payment of 6 hours. No Saturday penalty exists for this group. Extra rates under clause 44 are capped at triple time (44.3).
- Radio technical staff: Clause 45.1. Sunday and public holiday carry a minimum payment of 4 hours. Shift penalties are 15% where any part of the shift falls between 6.00 pm and 7.00 am, and 30% for a permanent night shift worked wholly in that window for more than 4 weeks (45.2). Those penalties are not paid on a shift attracting another penalty, except on a public holiday or a rostered day off (45.2(c)).
- Journalists: Clause 18.5(a). Journalists have no Saturday and no Sunday penalty, and are required to work public holidays other than Christmas Day and Good Friday at ordinary rates. In exchange they get an extra 2 weeks of annual leave. Shift penalties are 110% and 117.5% under clause 51.1, not cumulative (51.2).
- Cinema workers: Clauses 13.4, 58.1(b) and 61.4. The published cinema minimum already contains an 8% penalty averaging component paid on all hours worked, which is why there is no separate weekend penalty. Clause 23.2 is expressly displaced by 61.4(a), so the public holiday rate is 200% for weekly employees and 200% for casuals. Ordinary hours between 1.00 am and 8.00 am are 200% (58.1(c)).
- Artists and performers: Clauses 68.4(c), 68.5(e), 69.1 and 23.2(a). Saturday ordinary hours are capped at 8 hours excluding meal breaks, and on content other than feature films the 125% also requires a rostered free day between Monday and Friday. The public holiday minimum is 4 hours or an additional day off.
- Musicians and session singers: Clauses 76.1 and 76.2(a), with a minimum payment of 4 hours on a public holiday. No Saturday penalty is stated for musicians. Session singers get 250% under 76.3(a). Casual public holiday here is additive and not compounded: 200% plus the 25% loading, so 225% (76.2(b)).
- Motion picture production: Clauses 77.1(a), 77.2, 80.4(b) and 23.2(a). Ordinary hours may be worked Monday to Saturday with no flat Saturday percentage. Saturday 7.00 am to 8.00 pm instead attracts the 25% Zone B loading under 81.1, which drops to nil where a 6 day week is contracted under 80.3(b). All Sunday time is overtime at 200%. Zone loadings are payable in addition to all other payments including overtime, with no cap.
All values are percentages of the base hourly rate. Casual rates shown are inclusive of the 25% casual loading on top of the FT/PT rate. For your own dollar amounts, use the FWO Pay Calculator.
These are the percentages. To turn them into dollars for a specific roster, the penalty rates calculator prices Saturday, Sunday, public holiday and shift hours against this award’s own classification rates.
Pay rates by classification
Weekly rates are for 38 ordinary hours. Casual hourly includes the 25% loading.
| Level | Classification | Weekly rate | Hourly rate | Casual hourly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 1 | Grade 1 (no job titles sit here; the rate is the base for adult cadet rates, clause 13.7) | $978.10 | $25.74 | $32.18 |
| Grade 2 | Grade 2 (Motion Picture Production Employee Level 1) | $1,004.90 | $26.44 | $33.05 |
| Grade 3 | Grade 3 (Motion Picture Production Employee Level 2) | $1,029.10 | $27.08 | $33.85 |
| Grade 4 | Grade 4 (trainee, assistant technician, wardrobe assistant, radio broadcast operator) | $1,062.90 | $27.97 | $34.96 |
| Grade 5 | Grade 5 (Technician B, Camera Operator B, hair or makeup artist, radio technician; the award standard rate) | $1,119.10 | $29.45 | $36.81 |
| Grade 6 | Grade 6 | $1,154.30 | $30.38 | $37.98 |
| Grade 7 | Grade 7 (Technician A, Camera Operator A, floor manager, Announcer Class 2) | $1,189.40 | $31.30 | $39.13 |
| Grade 8 | Grade 8 (Editor A, trainee director, captioner or audio describer, Announcer Grade 1) | $1,221.10 | $32.13 | $40.16 |
| Grade 9 | Grade 9 (director, floor manager major production) | $1,255.40 | $33.04 | $41.30 |
| Grade 10 | Grade 10 (presentation co-ordinator, radio engineer) | $1,283.10 | $33.77 | $42.21 |
| Grade 11 | Grade 11 (post-production Editor A, ENG Camera Operator A, radio chief engineer) | $1,309.50 | $34.46 | $43.08 |
| Grade 12 | Grade 12 (senior director, senior ENG camera operator) | $1,344.50 | $35.38 | $44.23 |
| Grade 13 | Grade 13 | $1,379.50 | $36.30 | $45.38 |
| Grade 14 | Grade 14 | $1,397.30 | $36.77 | $45.96 |
| Grade 15 | Grade 15 | $1,450.20 | $38.16 | $47.70 |
| Grade 16 | Grade 16 (supervising technician A+, supervising director) | $1,513.70 | $39.83 | $49.79 |
| Grade 17 | Grade 17 (Motion Picture Production Employee Level 9) | $1,548.80 | $40.76 | $50.95 |
| Grade 18 | Grade 18 (Motion Picture Production Employee Level 10) | $1,619.30 | $42.61 | $53.26 |
| Cinema L1 | Cinema Worker Level 1 (base $1,004.90 plus $80.39 penalty averaging) | $1,085.29 | $28.56 | $35.70 |
| Cinema L2 | Cinema Worker Level 2 (base $1,029.10 plus $82.33 penalty averaging) | $1,111.43 | $29.25 | $36.56 |
| Cinema L3 | Cinema Worker Level 3 (base $1,062.90 plus $85.03 penalty averaging) | $1,147.93 | $30.21 | $37.76 |
| Cinema L4 | Cinema Worker Level 4 (base $1,119.10 plus $89.53 penalty averaging) | $1,208.63 | $31.81 | $39.76 |
| Cinema L5 | Cinema Worker Level 5 (base $1,189.40 plus $95.15 penalty averaging) | $1,284.55 | $33.80 | $42.25 |
| Cinema L6 | Cinema Worker Level 6 (base $1,221.10 plus $97.69 penalty averaging) | $1,318.79 | $34.71 | $43.39 |
| Cinema L7 | Cinema Worker Level 7 (base $1,255.40 plus $100.43 penalty averaging) | $1,355.83 | $35.68 | $44.60 |
| Zone Manager | Cinema Zone Manager (base $1,255.40 plus $100.43 penalty averaging) | $1,355.83 | $35.68 | $44.60 |
| Journalist G1 | Journalist Grade 1, Band 1 (the base for cadet rates: 60%, 75% and 90% in years 1 to 3) | $1,221.10 | $32.13 | $40.16 |
| Journalist G2 | Journalist Grade 2, Band 1 | $1,309.50 | $34.46 | $43.08 |
| Journalist G3 | Journalist Grade 3, Band 1 | $1,450.20 | $38.16 | $47.70 |
| Journalist G4 | Journalist Grade 4, Band 1 | $1,513.70 | $39.83 | $49.79 |
| Journalist G5 | Journalist Grade 5, Band 2 | $1,584.20 | $41.69 | $52.11 |
| Journalist G6 | Journalist Grade 6, Band 2 | $1,689.40 | $44.46 | $55.58 |
| Journalist G7 | Journalist Grade 7, Band 2 | $1,795.00 | $47.24 | $59.05 |
| Journalist G8 | Journalist Grade 8, Band 3 | $1,848.00 | $48.63 | $60.79 |
Rates effective from 1 July 2026 after the 4.75% Annual Wage Review increase. Weekly rates are for 38 ordinary hours. Casual rates include the 25% loading on top of the hourly rate. Source: FWO Pay Guides.
Allowances
Paid on top of the base rate. Amounts effective from 1 July 2026.
| Allowance | Amount | Frequency | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vehicle allowance | $1.00 | per kilometre | Clause 15.3(a)(i), where the employer requires you to use your own vehicle in the course of employment. Award-wide, not stream-specific. A motorcycle is $0.52 per kilometre under 15.3(a)(ii). |
| First aid allowance | $22.38 | per week | Clause 15.2(a)(i), 2.0% of the standard rate, for full-time employees. Part-time and casual employees get $0.59 per hour under 15.2(a)(ii), capped at $22.38 a week. |
| Uniform allowance | $1.55 | per rostered day | Clause 15.3(c), capped at $7.61 per week. |
| Language allowance, Indigenous performers | $1,786.76 - $3,577.09 | per annum | Clause 15.2(b)(i). $1,786.76 at English proficiency level 1 (minimal) and $3,577.09 at level 2 (general). |
| Broadcast Operator's Certificate of Proficiency (BOCP) | $20.14 | per week | Clause 34.2(b), television, 1.8% of the standard rate. Paid for all purposes, so it forms part of the rate used for penalties and leave. |
| Television Operator's Certificate of Proficiency (TVOCP) | $39.06 | per week | Clause 34.2(c), television, 3.49% of the standard rate, paid for all purposes and in addition to the BOCP allowance. |
| Height allowance | $10.41 - $36.37 | per shift | Clause 34.2(i), television. $10.41 at 15 to 50 metres, $21.93 at 51 to 90 metres, $36.37 above 90 metres. |
| Director's loading | 25% of the minimum weekly rate | per week | Clause 34.2(f)(i), television, paid for all purposes. A Supervising Director, Director/Specialist or Senior Director who is paid it is exempt from the annual leave loading in clause 18.3, and from clauses 29, 30.2, 31 (except 31.5) and 32. Directors and trainee directors are not paid it and are not exempt unless they agree in writing. |
| Meal allowance, television | $24.39 | per meal | Clause 34.3(a). Radio announcers and broadcaster/journalists get $31.31 per second and subsequent meal away from home (46.3(a)(i)); radio technical staff get $20.92 after more than 2 hours of unnotified overtime (46.3(a)(ii)); journalists get $28.71 (52.2(a)). |
| Spectacles allowance, journalists | $114.28 | per claim | Clause 52.2(d), covering the first frames plus the cost of the lens. |
| Zone manager allowance, cinemas | $42.19 - $60.21 | per additional cinema per week | Clause 62.2(a)(i). $60.21 per extra cinema supervised in zone 1, capped at $361.36 a week; $42.19 in zone 2, capped at $254.37 a week. |
| Travelling meal allowances, artists | $21.63 - $37.21 | per meal break | Clause 66.3(a)(ii). Breakfast $21.63, lunch $24.39, dinner $37.21. Motion picture production location meals are lower: lunch $17.01, dinner $26.13, supper $17.01 (83.2(a)). Musicians get $18.51, $27.53 and $36.52 (74.2(a)(iv)). |
| Accommodation allowance | $10.56 - $42.20 | per day | Clauses 66.3(d)(ii) and 83.2(d). $10.56 for a private home, homestead or hotel standard, $21.23 for an air-conditioned caravan or sewered mining camp, $42.20 for shearer's quarters, a rough mining camp or camping. |
The numbers that drive this award.
Set by Broadcasting, Recorded Entertainment and Cinemas Award 2020 (MA000091) and the NES.
Award-specific provisions.
Where this award goes beyond, or sits at, the NES floor.
Standard NES floor of 4 weeks per year of full-time service. Pro-rata for part-time.
You are paid what you would have earned for your normal hours excluding overtime, AND a flat 17.5% of your classification minimum. This award adds the two rather than paying the greater of them. The 17.5% is calculated on the minimum wage for your classification, not on your roster earnings (clause 18.3(b)). The roster earnings are paid separately under clause 18.3(a), which is why the two are added. Run the numbers in the annual leave loading calculator.
Television, clause 29.3: a 28 consecutive day roster period with 9 days off, one of which the employer designates as an accrued day off. Working that accrued day off with no banking agreement pays 200%, or 250% on a public holiday, minimum 4 hours. Journalists, clause 48.1: 38 hours averaged as 19 days in a 20 day cycle, or 9 days in a 10 day cycle. Cinemas and motion picture production use 152 hour, 28 day cycles instead (clauses 58.2 and 77.1).
Calculate your leave under this award
The Broadcasting and Recorded Entertainment Award sets your pay rates, but your paid leave runs on the National Employment Standards. Work out 4 weeks of holidays with the annual leave calculator, and your 10 days of paid sick and carer's leave with the personal leave calculator. To confirm which award applies to you and how it lifts entitlements above the NES floor, read our guide to modern awards.
Who this award covers.
The Broadcasting and Recorded Entertainment Award (MA000091) is the common name for the Broadcasting, Recorded Entertainment and Cinemas Award 2020. Industries, work types and exclusions are taken from the Fair Work Ombudsman summary.
Industries
Work types
Notes & exclusions. Annual leave here is an addition, not a choice. Clause 18.3 pays you what you would have earned for your normal hours excluding overtime, and a flat 17.5% of your classification minimum on top. The word "greater" never appears. For television employees clauses 32.1(d) and 32.2(d) then strip the shift duty allowance and the weekend penalties out of the first part, so it collapses back close to base pay; in every other stream the roster earnings are real. Nobody under this award is an NES shiftworker, which the award states twice, so there is no fifth week. Clause 18.2 gives 1 to 5 extra days instead for 6 or more Sundays and public holidays worked, and journalists get 2 extra weeks because they work public holidays at ordinary rates. The rates on this page are the television ones. Seven other streams differ, so check yours. Grade 1 is not a classification anyone sits on: it holds no job titles and exists to calculate adult cadet rates under clause 13.7. Artists and musicians are paid by the hour, day, week or engagement under clauses 13.8 and 13.11, which the table below does not reproduce.
Roles paid under this award.
Each classification has its own pay grade. Use the FWO Pay Calculator for current dollar rates.
- 01Entertainment employee Grades 2 to 18
- 02Cinema Worker Levels 1 to 7 and Zone Manager
- 03Journalist Grades 1 to 8 and cadets
- 04Artists: extras, stand-ins, doubles, bit players and performers
- 05Musicians and session singers
- 06Motion Picture Production Employee Levels 1 to 10
Broadcasting and Recorded Entertainment Award questions, answered.
Penalty rates, leave entitlements and award-specific provisions under MA000091. Verified against the modern award text.
Who does the Broadcasting and Recorded Entertainment Award cover?
What is the Saturday penalty rate under the Broadcasting and Recorded Entertainment Award?
What is the Sunday rate under the Broadcasting and Recorded Entertainment Award?
What is the public holiday rate under the Broadcasting and Recorded Entertainment Award?
How many weeks of annual leave do I get under the Broadcasting and Recorded Entertainment Award?
How is annual leave loading calculated under the Broadcasting and Recorded Entertainment Award?
What is the casual loading under the Broadcasting and Recorded Entertainment Award?
Does the Broadcasting and Recorded Entertainment Award include rostered days off (RDOs)?
Does the Broadcasting and Recorded Entertainment Award have evening or night-shift loadings?
Where do I find current pay rates by classification under the Broadcasting and Recorded Entertainment Award?
Verified against the modern award text.
Penalty rates, shift loadings and continuous-shift eligibility on this page were verified against Broadcasting, Recorded Entertainment and Cinemas Award 2020 (MA000091) on the Fair Work Commission's awards.fairwork.gov.au.
For up-to-date pay rates by classification, refer to the FWO Pay Calculator. Modern awards are reviewed and varied periodically by the Fair Work Commission; check the source for the latest text.