Road Transport Award Pay Rates 2026-27: Every Grade
Minimum rates under the Road Transport and Distribution Award 2020 (MA000038), effective from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026.
The short answer
A Transport Worker Grade 1 on a 38-hour week is paid $26.87 an hour or $1,021.00 a week full-time. A casual at the same classification is paid $33.59 an hour, including the 25% casual loading. On that full-time wage, take-home pay after income tax and the Medicare levy is $45,583 a year, or $1,753 a fortnight.
That is the 38-hour week the award sets for most of the employees it covers. Employees engaged in the transport or distribution of petroleum products are on a 35-hour week instead, so a Transport Worker Grade 1 doing that work is paid $29.17 an hour and $36.46 as a casual. Their ten grades are published in their own table below, and every table on this page is labelled with the week its hourly rates come from. Long distance operations are a different award again, MA000039, and no rate for it appears here.
MA000038 rates by classification.
All 24 classifications, with the casual rate the award publishes and what each one actually takes home after tax.
Transport employees38-hour week
1 July 2026 · PR799318
| Classification | Weekly | Hourly | Casual hourly | Take-home a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Transport Worker Grade 1 | $1,021.00 | $26.87 | $33.59 | $45,583 |
| Transport Worker Grade 2 | $1,045.50 | $27.51 | $34.39 | $46,449 |
| Transport Worker Grade 3 | $1,057.60 | $27.83 | $34.79 | $46,877 |
| Transport Worker Grade 4 | $1,076.20 | $28.32 | $35.40 | $47,534 |
| Transport Worker Grade 5 | $1,089.60 | $28.67 | $35.84 | $48,008 |
| Transport Worker Grade 6 | $1,102.00 | $29.00 | $36.25 | $48,447 |
| Transport Worker Grade 7 | $1,118.00 | $29.42 | $36.78 | $49,012 |
| Transport Worker Grade 8 | $1,150.50 | $30.28 | $37.85 | $50,162 |
| Transport Worker Grade 9 | $1,169.70 | $30.78 | $38.48 | $50,841 |
| Transport Worker Grade 10 | $1,198.80 | $31.55 | $39.44 | $51,870 |
Distribution facility employees38-hour week
1 July 2026 · PR799318
| Classification | Weekly | Hourly | Casual hourly | Take-home a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Distribution facility employee level 1 | $1,057.60 | $27.83 | $34.79 | $46,877 |
| Distribution facility employee level 2 | $1,076.20 | $28.32 | $35.40 | $47,534 |
| Distribution facility employee level 3 | $1,118.00 | $29.42 | $36.78 | $49,012 |
| Distribution facility employee level 4 | $1,169.70 | $30.78 | $38.48 | $50,841 |
A shorter week, so a higher hourly rate
This is the one table on the page whose weekly rates are not divided by 38. The ordinary hours clause that applies only to employees engaged in the transport or distribution of petroleum products says “ordinary hours of work are: (a)35 hours per week”, against the 38 hours the award sets for the employees in the tables above. A Transport Worker Grade 1 is therefore $29.17 an hour here, not $26.87. The two grade tables carry identical weekly rates. Only the divisor differs. Every hourly and casual figure below is the award’s own published rate, checked against its rates summary schedule, not our division.
Minimum rates—oil distribution workers35-hour week
1 July 2026 · PR799318
| Classification | Weekly | Hourly | Casual hourly | Take-home a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Transport Worker Grade 1 | $1,021.00 | $29.17 | $36.46 | $45,583 |
| Transport Worker Grade 2 | $1,045.50 | $29.87 | $37.34 | $46,449 |
| Transport Worker Grade 3 | $1,057.60 | $30.22 | $37.78 | $46,877 |
| Transport Worker Grade 4 | $1,076.20 | $30.75 | $38.44 | $47,534 |
| Transport Worker Grade 5 | $1,089.60 | $31.13 | $38.91 | $48,008 |
| Transport Worker Grade 6 | $1,102.00 | $31.49 | $39.36 | $48,447 |
| Transport Worker Grade 7 | $1,118.00 | $31.94 | $39.93 | $49,012 |
| Transport Worker Grade 8 | $1,150.50 | $32.87 | $41.09 | $50,162 |
| Transport Worker Grade 9 | $1,169.70 | $33.42 | $41.78 | $50,841 |
| Transport Worker Grade 10 | $1,198.80 | $34.25 | $42.81 | $51,870 |
Take-home is an estimate for a single Australian resident for tax purposes with no study loan debt and no Medicare levy surcharge, calculated with the same Wage Calculator used across this site. Superannuation is paid by your employer on top of these rates and is never deducted from them.
MA000038 junior rates by age.
The award pays a junior employee a percentage of the adult rate. The percentages below are read from the award text, and the dollar figures are worked out from the adult weekly rate. Each table says exactly how, and which of its figures were checked against rates the award itself prints.
Clause 17.3(a): Junior employee rates
What each percentage is a percentage of, in the words of the clause: “Junior employees will be entitled to a percentage of the applicable adult rate for their classification as follows:”
The same clause also says: “Where a junior employee aged 18 years or more is required to drive a motor vehicle and is in sole charge of that vehicle, the employee must be paid the adult rate assigned to the class of driving work that the employee is required to perform.”
| Age | Percentage of adult rate |
|---|---|
| Under 19 years | 70% |
| 19 years | 80% |
| 20 years | 100% |
| Classification | Under 1970% | 1980% | 20100% |
|---|---|---|---|
| Transport employeesTransport Worker Grade 1 | $18.81$714.70 a week | $21.49$816.80 a week | $26.87$1,021.00 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 2 | $19.26$731.85 a week | $22.01$836.40 a week | $27.51$1,045.50 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 3 | $19.48$740.32 a week | $22.27$846.08 a week | $27.83$1,057.60 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 4 | $19.82$753.34 a week | $22.66$860.96 a week | $28.32$1,076.20 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 5 | $20.07$762.72 a week | $22.94$871.68 a week | $28.67$1,089.60 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 6 | $20.30$771.40 a week | $23.20$881.60 a week | $29.00$1,102.00 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 7 | $20.59$782.60 a week | $23.54$894.40 a week | $29.42$1,118.00 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 8 | $21.19$805.35 a week | $24.22$920.40 a week | $30.28$1,150.50 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 9 | $21.55$818.79 a week | $24.63$935.76 a week | $30.78$1,169.70 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 10 | $22.08$839.16 a week | $25.24$959.04 a week | $31.55$1,198.80 a week |
| Distribution facility employeesDistribution facility employee level 1 | $19.48$740.32 a week | $22.27$846.08 a week | $27.83$1,057.60 a week |
| Distribution facility employee level 2 | $19.82$753.34 a week | $22.66$860.96 a week | $28.32$1,076.20 a week |
| Distribution facility employee level 3 | $20.59$782.60 a week | $23.54$894.40 a week | $29.42$1,118.00 a week |
| Distribution facility employee level 4 | $21.55$818.79 a week | $24.63$935.76 a week | $30.78$1,169.70 a week |
| Minimum rates, oil distribution workersTransport Worker Grade 1 | $20.42$714.70 a week | $23.34$816.80 a week | $29.17$1,021.00 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 2 | $20.91$731.85 a week | $23.90$836.40 a week | $29.87$1,045.50 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 3 | $21.15$740.32 a week | $24.17$846.08 a week | $30.22$1,057.60 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 4 | $21.52$753.34 a week | $24.60$860.96 a week | $30.75$1,076.20 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 5 | $21.79$762.72 a week | $24.91$871.68 a week | $31.13$1,089.60 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 6 | $22.04$771.40 a week | $25.19$881.60 a week | $31.49$1,102.00 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 7 | $22.36$782.60 a week | $25.55$894.40 a week | $31.94$1,118.00 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 8 | $23.01$805.35 a week | $26.30$920.40 a week | $32.87$1,150.50 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 9 | $23.39$818.79 a week | $26.74$935.76 a week | $33.42$1,169.70 a week |
| Transport Worker Grade 10 | $23.98$839.16 a week | $27.40$959.04 a week | $34.25$1,198.80 a week |
Each cell is the hourly rate, with the full-time weekly rate beneath it. The award prints the percentages. The dollar figures are worked out from them, as follows.
Each weekly figure is the adult weekly rate multiplied by the percentage, rounded to the nearest cent with an exact half cent rounding up. Each hourly figure is that weekly figure divided by the ordinary hours in that classification’s full-time week, rounded to the nearest cent.
The award prints no junior dollar figures to check these against. The 24 at 100% are the adult rate itself, and each one equals it. Fair Work’s pay guide may round differently, so a figure here can differ from it by a cent.
Where these figures come from.
Provenance
Verified- Award
- Road Transport and Distribution Award 2020 (MA000038)
- Effective from
- 1 July 2026
- Consolidated to
- 1 July 2026
- Determinations
- PR799280, PR799318, PR799475
- Retrieved
- 2026-09-09
- Cross-checked
- 24 of 24 rates against Schedule C
Every rate above was read from the award text at the Fair Work award library and then checked a second time against Schedule C of the same award, which republishes the hourly rates. Casual rates are the award’s own published figures rather than our multiplication, because the award rounds differently from a calculator. The junior percentages were read from the award in the same way. The junior dollar figures are worked out from them, and each junior table says which of its figures were checked against rates the award itself prints. Nothing here is copied from another pay site.
What this page does not cover.
Listed as plainly as what it does, because a rate page that hides its gaps is how the wrong number ends up on a payslip.
Long distance operations
Long distance work is covered by MA000039 and paid cents per kilometre. That award is not extracted, so no figure for it is published here.
State transport awards
An employer outside the national system may be covered by a WA or NSW state instrument, or by Victorian owner driver schedules, instead. No rate for those is published here.
Penalty rates and allowances
Overtime, shift, weekend and public holiday work is paid above these rates, and the award sets its allowances separately. Neither is on this page.
Road Transport Award Pay Rates questions, answered.
What are the road transport award pay rates for 2026?
The Road Transport and Distribution Award 2020 (MA000038) pays a Transport Worker Grade 1 $26.87 an hour, $1,021.00 a week full-time, rising to $31.55 an hour at grade 10, from 1 July 2026. A distribution facility employee is paid from $27.83 to $30.78 an hour, while a storeworker employed by a storage or wholesale business is usually on a different award, set out on Warehouse Award Pay Rates. All 24 rates are in the tables above. One group is not on the same week as the rest: an employee engaged in the transport or distribution of petroleum products works 35 ordinary hours rather than 38, so grade 1 for that work is $29.17 an hour, rising to $34.25 at grade 10. What the grades pay a driver, with casual rates and take-home pay after tax, is set out on Truck Driver Pay Rates.
Why are oil distribution rates higher under the road transport award?
They are not higher weekly. They are higher hourly, because the working week is shorter. The award sets 38 ordinary hours for most of the employees it covers, and 35 for employees engaged in the transport or distribution of petroleum products. A grade 1 weekly rate of $1,021.00 over 35 hours is $29.17 an hour. The same weekly rate over 38 hours is $26.87. Both figures are in the award, for different work, and this page publishes each grade against the week that actually applies to it. Dividing an oil distribution weekly rate by 38 produces a rate the award does not set, which is the single most common way this award is published wrongly.
Which grade applies to my truck?
The award decides it in its own classification definitions, by the work done and the vehicle driven, and this page does not publish a vehicle mass table for them. The rates above were read from the rates clause of MA000038 and checked a second time against its rates summary schedule. The classification definitions were not extracted, so any mass to grade mapping printed here would be a copy of another site's reading rather than our own, and the sites that do publish one disagree with each other. Read the classification definitions in MA000038 itself, then take the rate for that grade from the table above. A driver employed by a manufacturer rather than a transport business is usually on the driver scale in the Manufacturing Award instead, set out on Manufacturing Award Pay Rates.
Does this award cover long distance truck drivers?
No. Long distance operations are covered by a separate instrument, the Road Transport (Long Distance Operations) Award MA000039, which pays cents per kilometre rather than an hourly rate. No figure for MA000039 appears anywhere on this page, because we have not extracted it. The two awards carry their own coverage clauses and those decide which one applies, not the job title, so if any of the driving is long haul or interstate, read the MA000039 coverage clause before using a grade from this page. If you are paid by the kilometre, you are almost certainly not being paid under MA000038.
Is the road transport award rate different in WA or NSW?
No. MA000038 is a national instrument and its rates do not vary by state or territory, so a Transport Worker Grade 1 is paid at least $26.87 an hour in Western Australia, New South Wales, Queensland and everywhere else. What differs is which instrument covers the employer. Separate state instruments exist for employers outside the national system, including the Transport Workers (General) Award in Western Australia and the Transport Industry (State) Award in New South Wales, and Victoria publishes its own owner driver rates schedules. This page publishes no figure for any of them.
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