Storage Services and Wholesale Award 2020- A Simple Guide for Your Business

Feb 20

Who does this Award Apply to?

The Award covers employers and employees involved in the storage services and wholesale industry. This includes activities such as receiving, handling, storing, freezing, bottling, packing, sorting, and dispatching goods.

To ensure compliance, you must distinguish between two primary classification streams:

Store workers (Grades 1–4): These roles focus on the physical handling of goods, including picking, packing, and operating materials handling equipment.
Wholesale Employees (Levels 1–4): These roles are generally customer or transaction-focused, involving receiving payments, displaying goods for sale, or providing product advice.

*Special Note for Steel Distribution: If your business involves receiving, cutting, or handling steel and similar materials, you are likely employing Steel Distributing employees. These roles have specific task descriptions within the Store worker grades that account for the technical nature of handling and cutting metal.

Employment Categories

The Award recognises three categories of employment, each with rigid engagement rules:

Full-time: These employees work an average of 38 ordinary hours per week.
Part-time: These staff work fewer than 38 hours but have a reasonably predictable pattern of work. You must agree on their hours and roster in writing upon engagement. Crucially, part-time employees must be rostered for a minimum of 3 consecutive hours for any shift.
Casual: To compensate for the lack of permanent entitlements, casuals receive a 25% casual loading on top of their base rate. A vital risk mitigation point for payroll is the 4-hour minimum payment, which is required for every start. If a casual is called back to work twice in a single day, they are generally entitled to two separate minimum payments.

Breaks

Meal Breaks: An employee cannot work longer than 5 hours without an unpaid meal break of 30 to 60 minutes.
Rest Breaks: Employees are entitled to two 10-minute paid rest breaks (one morning, one afternoon), which count as time worked.

The Right to Disconnect

This standard allows employees to refuse to monitor or respond to contact outside of working hours unless that refusal is unreasonable.

Pay, Penalties, and Specific Allowances

Pay is determined by the minimum rates associated with an employee's Grade or Level. Penalty Rates apply for work outside standard hours:

Saturdays: 150% of the minimum hourly rate.
Sundays: 200% of the minimum hourly rate.
Public Holidays: 250% of the minimum hourly rate.

Common Allowances

Cold Temperatures: This is a high-compliance area. Extra hourly payments are triggered when employees work in temperatures at or below -15.6°C. Rates increase further as temperatures drop below -18.9°C and -23.3°C.
Meal Allowance: Payable if an employee works more than one hour of overtime after their usual finishing time without prior notice.
Uniforms and Protective Clothing: If the work is "unusually dirty" or requires a specific uniform, the employer must provide the clothing or reimburse the costs.

Overtime and Shiftwork

Overtime is paid when an employee exceeds their ordinary hours. For full-time and part-time staff, the rate is 150% for the first two hours and 200% thereafter. Casuals receive higher rates (175% and 225%) to incorporate their loading.

If you operate Shiftwork (Early Morning, Afternoon, or Night shifts), you must pay the specific shift loadings (ranging from 112.5% to 130%). Ensure a 10-hour rest period between successive days of work; if you require an employee to return sooner, you must pay them penalty rates until they are released for a full 10-hour break.

Where Employers Often Trip Up

Higher Duties Miscalculation: If an employee steps up to a higher role for more than 3 hours in a day, they must be paid the higher rate for the full day. If they step up for 3 hours or less, they are paid the higher rate for the time worked, with a minimum of one hour.

Job Search Entitlement: When you provide a permanent employee with notice of termination, they are entitled to up to one day off without loss of pay to seek other employment.

Classification Creep: Failing to move a Store worker from Grade 1 to Grade 2 once they obtain a forklift license or have completed 12 months of service.

Practical Compliance Tips

Audit Your Classifications: Explicitly label your staff as either Store worker Grades or Wholesale Levels in your payroll system to avoid confusion during an audit.

Record Every Agreement: Any variation to a part-time roster or an agreement to take "time off instead of overtime" must be in writing.

Display the Standards: You are legally required to make the Award and the National Employment Standards (NES) available to all staff via a noticeboard or accessible electronic means.

The Storage Services and Wholesale Award 2020 provides a structured framework for your workforce. By respecting mandatory break thresholds, maintaining precise records for part-time and casual staff, and correctly applying higher duties rules, you can focus on growing your business while remaining protected from compliance risks. Need a hand? Reach out to FiveSeven.

Modern Awards are detailed and complex. If you’re ever unsure about a specific situation or an employee’s level, FiveSeven can help make sure you’re on the right track. Staying proactive is the best way to keep your business running smoothly!

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.