Mining Industry Award 2020 - A Simple Guide for Your Business

Apr 22

Who Does This Award Cover?

The Award covers employers throughout Australia operating within the "mining industry" and their employees in the specific classifications listed in the Award.

The "Mining Industry" includes:

Extracting metals, minerals, ores, gemstones, or phosphates from the earth.
Exploration, prospecting, and land clearing related to mining.
Processing, smelting, and refining of these materials.
Transportation, handling, and loading on a mine site or via mine-owned infrastructure.
Ongoing maintenance and repair of mining plant and equipment.
Temporary labour services specifically engaged for the activities above.

Common Exclusions: To avoid costly misapplications, note that the Award does not cover:

Head office or town office employees.
Clerical or administrative workers.
Professional engineers, geologists, scientists, or IT professionals.
The oil, gas, and hydrocarbon industries.
The black coal mining industry.

If your business operates across different sectors, an employee is covered by the award classification most appropriate to the work they actually perform and the environment they work in.

The Three Types of Employment

Employees must be engaged under one of the following categories:

Full-time: Engaged to work an average of 38 ordinary hours per week.
Part-time: Engaged for less than 38 hours per week, receiving pro-rata pay and conditions.
Casual: Engaged on an as-needed basis.

The Casual Employment Framework

Casuals receive a 25% casual loading in addition to their hourly rate. This loading is paid in place of leave entitlements like annual leave or notice of termination.

Critical Consultant Insights:

Minimum Engagement Rule: You must pay casuals for at least 2 hours of work every time they are called in, even if they are sent home early.
Casual Overtime: Under this Award, casual overtime is calculated as a percentage of the casual ordinary hourly rate (the base rate plus the 25% loading). Do not calculate overtime on the unloaded base rate.
Conversion: The NES provides a clear pathway for casuals to transition to permanent employment.

Hours of Work and Rostering

Ordinary hours are based on an average of 38 hours per week.

Span of Hours: For day workers, ordinary hours are worked between 6:00 am and 6:00 pm, Monday to Sunday.
Shift Lengths: Shifts can be up to 10 hours long, or 12 hours if agreed upon in writing, by the majority of affected employees.
Cycle Work: This involves rosters of "on-duty" and "off-duty" periods (e.g., FIFO arrangements).
Roster Changes: Generally, you must provide 48 hours’ notice to change a roster.

The Right to Disconnect

Employees now have a legal right to refuse to monitor or respond to work contact outside of hours unless that refusal is unreasonable (e.g., emergencies or roster changes).

Breaks: Keeping Your Team Safe

Failure to manage breaks is a major safety and compliance risk.

The 5-Hour Rule: No employee can be required to work more than 5 hours without a meal break.
Standard Workers: Entitled to an unpaid 30-minute meal break after 5 hours.
Shiftworkers: Shifts of 10 hours or less get one 20-minute paid meal break. Shifts over 10 hours get paid breaks totaling 40 minutes.
Rest Between Shifts: Employees should have 10 consecutive hours off between shifts (8 hours for shiftworkers).

The Penalty Trap: If you require an employee to resume work without their mandatory 10 or 8-hour break, you must pay them at double rates (overtime rates) for all time worked until they are released for a full break.

Shiftwork

Shiftwork attracts higher pay (loadings). Shifts are defined by their finish times:

Afternoon Shift: Finishes after 7:00 pm and at or before midnight.
Night Shift: Finishes after midnight and at or before 8:00 am.
Permanent Night Shift: When an employee works night shifts only, stays on nights for more than 4 weeks, or has a cycle that doesn't provide at least one-third of their time off the night shift.

Roles and Classifications

The Award has 7 "Levels," from Entry Level (Introductory) to Level 7 (Dual Trade Instrumentation). These cover Service Employees, Surface Mining/Haulage, Processing, Underground, and Maintenance.

The "Appointment" Rule: While progression to Level 3 is generally based on gaining skills and experience, progression to Level 4 and above requires a formal appointment by the employer. This protects your business from "automatic" pay increases based solely on an employee's claim of higher skills.

Minimum Pay and the Standard Rate

The Award sets the minimum rate for each level. The "Standard Rate" (Level 3) is a vital benchmark for calculating allowances. Currently, the Standard Rate is $1068.40 per week (28.12 per hour).

The "All-Purpose" Industry Allowance

Almost all employees are entitled to the Industry Allowance, which is currently $39.53 per week.

The Payroll Trap: This is an "all-purpose" allowance. This means the allowance must be added to the base rate before you apply overtime or penalty multipliers (150%, 200%, etc.). Your "Ordinary Hourly Rate" is: (Classification Rate + Industry Allowance).

Other Allowances & Salaries

Specific Task Allowances: Includes Tool Allowance ($17.86 per week), First Aid, and Underground allowances.
Annualised Salaries: You can pay a flat salary to cover all Award entitlements, but it must be in writing. You are required to perform a reconciliation every 12 months (or on termination) to ensure the employee was not underpaid compared to the Award.
If the reconciliation amount is less than the former amount, the employer shall pay the employee the amount of the shortfall within 14 days.

Common Mistakes Employers Make

The 5-Hour Breach: Forcing employees to work through the 5-hour mark without a break.
Casual Minimums: Not paying the 2-hour minimum for casual call ins.
Payroll Multiplication Errors: Failing to include the Industry Allowance in the "all-purpose" rate before calculating overtime.
The Rest Rule Penalty: Failing to pay double rates when an employee is called back to work without a full 10-hour break.
Misclassification: Keeping a trade-qualified employee at Level 2 instead of Level 3.
Record Failures: Not having employees on "flat" salaries sign off on their actual hours worked each pay period.

Practical Tips for Compliance

Roster Discipline: Provide at least 48 hours' notice for changes to avoid disputes.
Annual Classification Audits: Review your team's levels every year. Ensure those at Level 4 and above have formal appointment letters to justify their pay grade.
Calculation Accuracy: Use the Standard Rate ($1068.40) to check that your allowance percentages remain correct as Award rates change.
Mandatory Compliance Tip: You are legally required to ensure a copy of both the Award and the NES is available to all employees. This can be achieved through a physical notice board in a common area or via an accessible electronic system (such as a company intranet or shared drive).

While the Mining Industry Award 2020 is complex, it is designed to manage the unique demands of the industry fairly. For a small business, compliance is your best defense against industrial disputes and costly back pay claims.

Navigating Awards can be tricky, and the cost of getting it wrong is high. If you’re unsure about how a specific rule applies to your team, FiveSeven is here to help.

The information above forms part of our Understanding Your Award series and provides a high-level overview only. Further obligations may apply depending on your business and workforce. This Information is current at the time of publication Jan 2026. Workplace laws and awards may change.