Has your OSHC service applied for the worker retention payment grant yet?

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Many providers and services think they are not eligible – but this is not true. The Government’s intention is for as many services as possible to apply for the grant. Find out why you should apply before 30 June 2025!

 

Who is NOSHSA?

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The National Outside School Hours Services Alliance (NOSHSA) is a network of all Australian state and territory Outside School Hours Care (OSHC) Associations and Communities of Practice (CoPs).

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NOSHSA is recognised as the Australian peak body for OSHC by the Education Council. Peak bodies are recognised by governments as being able to provide pertinent advice and recommendations on behalf of their members. The membership bases in each of NOSHSA's jurisdictions include both small and large providers, prioritising community based and not for profit parts of the sector.

 

NOSHSA has been meeting regularly with the Government and other large representative bodies over the past 2 years to ensure that the OSHC sector was included in the proposed wage increase for the Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) sector. As your peak body, we were very much involved in advocating for government funded wage increases long before the announcement was made.

 

What is the Worker Retention Payment?

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The worker retention payment is a 2-year grant from the government to help increase employees’ wages in ECEC and OSHC services up to 15% (10% in the first year and 15% in the second). Providers must apply for the grant. Employees do not have to be paid under the Children’s Services Award to be eligible.

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The worker retention payment is an interim measure while the Fair Work Commission finalises and implements changes to the Children’s Services Award (and other awards) following the findings of gender-based undervaluation. The Fair Work decision, published on the 16th April, indicates that all classifications and levels will increase, some as high as 23%, over the coming years. This increase is in addition to the annual wage review decision so the actual increases over this time are likely to be much higher.

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Why apply for the Worker Retention Payment by June 30?

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There are financial benefits in getting your application in before June 30 this year.

Services can apply for the grant up until September 2026. However, services who have submitted a complete application by 30 June 2025 may apply for:

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• Back dated payments to 2 December 2024 for all employees who were working in the service at the time.

• A once-off ‘Historical Leave Liability’ payment. This is a lump sum payment recognising the previously accrued leave of all the employees in your service, which will now need to be paid out at a higher rate – either because of the grant conditions, or because of the long-term increase in the Children’s Services Award announced by Fair Work.

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Due to gender-based undervaluation determinations, the Children’s Services Award rates are now increasing by 5% in August 2025 (on top of the regular annual wage increase payable from 1 July each year). This is in recognition that this award has been historically undervalued and lower paid due to gender (90% of the ECEC workforce is female).

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Apply before June 30 to not only give your employees a well-deserved back pay, but also help ensure the service is financially positioned to pay out future leave (annual leave, personal leave, long service leave) at the higher rates.

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Our employees don’t get paid under the Children’s Services Award?

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OSHC employees in CCS approved services are eligible if they are doing similar work to those employed under the Children's Services Award, even if employed under a different award or enterprise agreement (EA). As long as the award or EA has a provision for using an Individual Flexibility Arrangement (IFA), you can use this tool to pay the staff the worker retention payment. NOSHSA can assist you – you just need to contact us!

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We don’t have an EA to use as a ‘workplace instrument’?

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The easiest way for OSHC services to implement the wage increase is through an Individual Flexibility Arrangement (IFA) as the workplace instrument. You don’t need to be under an EA or develop an EA. An IFA is a written agreement between the employer and each employee to pay the higher wages. NOSHSA has an IFA template which can be used immediately with all employees as the compliant workplace instrument for the grant purposes.

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Already paid above the award?

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You can still get a funded increase on top of your current above award rate. However, you cannot use the grant money to fund your existing above award rate commitments.

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I already put my fees up, so am I ineligible?

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One of the grant conditions is that services do not increase their fees more than 4.4% between 8 August 2024 - 7 August 2025 and 4.2% between 8 August 2025 - 7 August 2026. However, you can request an alternative fee growth amount if you are able to demonstrate that the standard fee growth cap would seriously impact your service’s financial viability.

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While the grant program is for 2 years, the fee increase cap is per annum. This means that the service can opt in for the second year of the WRP if ineligible due to fee increase above the cap between 8 August 2024 - 7 August 2025.

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Need more information?

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Please reach out to NOSHSA now to ask your questions! It is better to find out all the information now, rather than find out later you were eligible and missed out on the financial benefits of applying before June 30.

NOSHSA also has a toolkit of resources to help you succeed in your application, pay the grant money accurately and track the payments.

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NOSHSA are here to help. We are funded by the Australian Government to provide this service and we continue to advocate on behalf of the sector. For further information about NOSHSA’s advocacy and resources, you are in the right place!

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Contact us Email: noshsa@noshsa.org.au

Phone: 1300 781 749

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