4. Coverage

4.1 This industry award covers employers throughout Australia in the poultry processing industry and their employees in the classifications listed in Schedule A—Classification Definitions to the exclusion of any other modern award.

4.2 The poultry processing industry means the killing, processing, preparation, packing, wholesaling and distribution of uncooked poultry, poultry products and poultry by‑products and, where the cooking is incidental to the aforementioned, cooked poultry, poultry products and poultry by-products.

4.3 This award covers any employer which supplies labour on an on-hire basis in the poultry processing industry in respect of on-hire employees in classifications covered by this award, and those on-hire employees, while engaged in the performance of work for a business in that industry. Clause 4.3 operates subject to the exclusions from coverage in this award.

4.4 This award covers employers which provide group training services for trainees engaged in the poultry processing industry and/or parts of that industry and those trainees engaged by a group training service hosted by a company to perform work at a location where the activities described in clauses 4.1 and 4.2 are being performed. Clause 4.4 operates subject to the exclusions from coverage in this award.

4.5 This award does not cover:

(a) employees excluded from award coverage by the Act;

(b) employees who are covered by a modern enterprise award or an enterprise instrument (within the meaning of the Fair Work (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Act 2009 (Cth)), or employers in relation to those employees; or

(c) employees who are covered by a State reference public sector modern award or a State reference public sector transitional award (within the meaning of the Fair Work (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Act 2009 (Cth)), or employers in relation to those employees.

4.6 Where an employer is covered by more than one award, an employee of that employer is covered by the award classification which is most appropriate to the work performed by the employee and to the environment in which the employee normally performs the work.

NOTE: Where there is no classification for a particular employee in this award it is possible that the employer and that employee are covered by an award with occupational coverage.

15. Minimum rates

[Varied by PR720159, PR718892, PR729333, PR740758, PR762183, PR767896, PR773961, PR786612, PR799354]

[15.1 varied by PR718892, PR729333, PR740758, PR762183, PR773961, PR786612, PR799354 ppc 01Jul26]

15.1 An employer must pay adult employees the following minimum rates for ordinary hours worked by the employee:

Employee classification | Minimum weekly rate (full-time employee) | Minimum hourly rate

| $ | $

Level 1 | 997.40 | 26.25

Level 2 | 1024.10 | 26.95

Level 3 | 1037.70 | 27.31

Level 4 | 1051.20 | 27.66

Level 5 | 1064.30 | 28.01

Level 6 | 1091.70 | 28.73

NOTE: See Schedule B—Summary of Hourly Rates of Pay for a summary of hourly rates of pay including overtime and penalty rates.

15.2 For the purposes of clause 15.1, any entitlement to a minimum rate expressed to be by the week means any entitlement which an employee would receive for performing 38 hours of work.

15.3 The following employees are not entitled to the minimum rates set out in the table in clause 15.1:

(a) a trainee:

[15.3(a)(i) varied by PR720159 ppc 18Jun20]

(i) Schedule E to the Miscellaneous Award 2020 sets out minimum wage rates and conditions for employees undertaking traineeships.

[15.3(a)(ii) varied by PR720159 ppc 18Jun20, PR718892, PR729333, PR740758, PR762183, PR773961, PR786612, PR799354 ppc 01Jul26]

(ii) This award incorporates the terms of Schedule E to the Miscellaneous Award 2020 as at 1 July 2026. Provided that any reference to “this award” in Schedule E to the Miscellaneous Award 2020 is to be read as referring to the Poultry Processing Award 2020 and not the Miscellaneous Award 2020; and

(b) an unapprenticed junior (see clause 15.4); and

(c) an employee receiving a supported wage (see Schedule D—Supported Wage System).

15.4 Unapprenticed junior minimum rates

[15.4 varied by PR767896 ppc 31Dec23]

Junior employees will be entitled to the percentage of the applicable adult weekly rate for their classification as follows:

Age | %

Under 17 years of age | 70

17 years of age | 80

18 years of age and over | 100

15.5 Higher duties

(a) An employee required by the employer to perform the duties of a position carrying a higher minimum rate than the employee’s ordinary classification for more than 4 hours during one day, must be paid the higher minimum rate for that day.

(b) An employee required by the employer to perform the duties of a position carrying a higher minimum rate than the employee’s ordinary classification for 4 hours or less during one day, must be paid the higher rate for the actual time worked at that higher level.

Schedule A—Classification Definitions

For the purposes of this award, the classification definitions are as follows:

A.1.1 Process Employee Level 1

(a) Points of entry

New employee.

(b) Skills/duties

(i) Undertakes structured induction training.

(ii) Works under direct supervision, either individually or in a team environment.

(iii) Undertakes training in quality systems.

(iv) Exercises minimal discretion.

(v) Undertakes training for any task.

(c) Promotional criteria

An employee remains at this level for the first 3 months or until they are capable of effectively performing the tasks required so as to enable them to progress to a higher level as a position becomes available.

A.1.2 Process Employee Level 2

(a) Points of entry

(i) Previously a Process Employee Level 1; or

(ii) Proven and demonstrated skills at this level.

(b) Skills/duties

(i) Responsible for the quality of their work within this level.

(ii) Undertakes duties in a safe and responsible manner.

(iii) Exercises minimal judgment.

(c) Indicative tasks

(i) Loading and unloading the crate washer for finished product.

(ii) Locating and removing any residual feathers from carcasses on the line.

(iii) Rehanging poultry post-primary grading and/or including wet re-hanging or hanging on to automatic cut up, or operator scales, carton strapping, including minor adjustment and tape installation.

(iv) Maintaining plant hygiene, including laundering protective clothing in the factory environs.

(v) Placing a pad on a tray, a plastic liner in a crate, or forming cartons manually or semi-automatically.

(vi) Loading trays into an automatic wrapping machine and/or the hand application of stick-on labels on tray packs or bags.

(vii) Moving product between work areas as directed/and or distributing ice throughout the plant where required.

(viii) Receiving incoming goods and/or packaged products from the plant and/or sorting and stacking products inside a freezer or chiller room, and retrieving this product for despatch.

(ix) Operating material handling equipment which may require a licence, conveyer or shrink wrap machine.

(d) Promotional criteria

An employee remains at this level until they have developed the skills to allow the employee to effectively perform the tasks required and are assessed to be competent to perform effectively at a higher level so as to enable them to progress as a position becomes available.

A.1.3 Process Employee Level 3

(a) Points of entry

(i) Previously a Process Employee Level 2 or lower; or

(ii) Proven and demonstrated skills at this level.

(b) Skills/duties

(i) Responsible for the quality of their own work within this level.

(ii) Will be required to have a working knowledge of quality systems.

(iii) Works in a team environment.

(c) Indicative tasks

(i) Employees engaged in the product areas from where the kill and eviscerating lines meet to the point of entry into the first washer and/or chiller, including re-hanging, vent opening, eviscerating, harvesting, pre‑pack presenter and evisceration checker.

(ii) Placing a whole bird and/or pieces into a plastic bag and/or clipping and/or placing the bagged or bulk bird into a carton or crate to quality standards.

(iii) Placing a bird and/or pieces into a plastic bag and/or clipping the bag on an automatic or semi-automatic machine.

(iv) Sorting and selecting pieces of boneless product to achieve random/set weights on valumatic trays and presenting the product to quality specifications which includes no blemishes, no retention of viscera and no protrusions or overlap, and to a standard specification layout.

(v) All duties relating to a nine piece cut up machine in order to consistently achieve quality standards.

(vi) General work associated with the preparation, packing and storage of uncooked and cooked processed poultry products using steam and/or other means of heating.

(vii) All mincing, filling, de-bone machine operation, flavour injector operation and mixer operation.

(d) Promotional criteria

An employee remains at this level until they have developed the skills to allow the employee to effectively perform the tasks required and are assessed to be competent to perform effectively at a higher level so as to enable them to progress as a position becomes available.

A.1.4 Process Employee Level 4

(a) Points of entry

(i) Previously a Process Employee Level 3 or lower; or

(ii) Proven and demonstrated skills at this level.

(b) Skills/duties

(i) Responsible for the quality of their own work within this level.

(ii) Will be required to have a working knowledge of quality systems.

(iii) Works in a team environment.

(c) Indicative tasks

(i) Operating a weight labelling machine which automatically places a price‑weight label, entering product and/or price coding and positioning labels to set quality standards.

(ii) Manually recording the type and weight of finished product from the packing floor to storage.

(iii) Unloading crates on to a dock, hanging live birds and/or catching escaped birds, assisting in the back up killing and restacking live bird crates.

(iv) Ensuring the accurate recording of product leaving the chiller or freezer ready for loading into a truck for despatch.

(v) Adult employees, driving a semi-trailer of any capacity within plant environs, loading and unloading the vehicle, monitoring livestock cooling devices and completing records as required.

(vi) Rendering or digestion operators.

(d) Promotional criteria

An employee remains at this level until they have developed the skills to allow the employee to effectively perform the tasks required and are assessed to be competent to perform effectively at a higher level so as to enable them to progress as a position becomes available.

A.1.5 Process Employee Level 5

(a) Points of entry

(i) Previously a Process Employee Level 4 or lower; or

(ii) Proven and demonstrated skills (including as appropriate, Industry Certification) at this level.

(b) Skills/duties

(i) Responsible for the quality of their own work within this level.

(ii) Will be required to have a working knowledge of quality systems.

(iii) Works in a team environment.

(c) Indicative tasks

(i) De-boning poultry manually, on a semi-automatic machine or an on-line boning operation, to specified standards.

(ii) Measuring and recording the physical properties of the whole bird or portions to established standards of measurement. This may include temperature, flock assessment, scalding characteristics, evisceration performance, water pick up where appropriate, bacteria control measures and preparation for laboratory staff and inspection services.

(iii) Skilled use of a hand operated rotary saw to cut the whole bird and/or pieces to set standards.

(iv) Primary grading of whole birds immediately after exiting the water and/or air chiller to predetermined quality specifications, sorting and selecting to meet those standards and placing the birds on shackles for distribution within the packing plant.

(v) Primary operation and care of all appropriate materials handling equipment under licence.

(d) Promotional criteria

An employee remains at this level until they have developed the skills to allow the employee to effectively perform the tasks required and are assessed to be competent to perform effectively at a higher level so as to enable them to progress as a position becomes available.

A.1.6 Process Employee Level 6

(a) Points of entry

(i) Previously a Process Employee Level 5 or lower; or

(ii) Proven and demonstrated skills at this level.

(b) Skills/duties

(i) Capable of performing the duties of a Process Employee Levels 1 to 5.

(ii) Completed an accredited ‘Train the Trainer’ course.

(c) Indicative tasks

(i) All the duties of a Process Employee Levels 1 to 5.

(ii) Training of other process employees as directed.