Equal Remuneration Decision notice to affected employee
template
This letter is to assist employers covered by the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability
Services Award 2010 (the SACS award) inform their employees how the Fair Work
Commission’s (formerly Fair Work Australia) Equal Remuneration Decision affects them.
You can find information about the Equal Remuneration Decision and the pay and conditions
that apply at www.fairwork.gov.au.
Suggested steps for preparing and using this letter template
If at any time you need more information or assistance, call the Fair Work Infoline on 13 13 94
or visit www.fairwork.gov.au.
Step 1: Create your notice letter
Consider the stream and classification of the SACS award that will apply to your employee. This will
be based on a number of things including:

any qualifications they have

years of experience in the industry

usual work performed on a daily basis, and

how much responsibility they have at work.
This template has been colour coded to assist you to complete it accurately. You simply need to
replace the red < > writing with what applies to your employee and situation.
Step 2: Consider whether you need legal advice
If you have contractual arrangements with your employees such as penalty offsetting you should
contact your solicitor or industry association for advice on how this will interact with the equal
remuneration decision. For employers paying their staff directly from the award, legal advice may not
be necessary.
Step 3: Meet with the new employee and provide the letter
Meeting face to face with your new employee to provide the letter and talk about the contents is a
good opportunity for:

you to explain the impact the decision will have on the business and the employee

the employee to ask questions, and

you to describe how your business is implementing the changes.
Step 4: Keep a copy of the letter and provide the employee with a copy
You can give this letter to your employees in person or electronically. You should also keep a copy to
make sure you both have a record of what has been discussed.
The Fair Work Ombudsman is committed to providing you with advice that you can rely on.
The information contained in this template is general in nature. If you are unsure about how it applies to your situation you
can call our Infoline on 13 13 94 or speak with a union, industry association or a workplace relations professional.
<Insert date>
Dear <insert employee name>,
This letter is to tell you about changes in the social and community services industry and how they
impact you.
On 1 February 2012, the Fair Work Commission (the Commission) (then Fair Work Australia) issued a
decision providing wage increases to employees covered by the Social, Community, Home Care and
Disability Services Award 2010 (the award) to fix wage inequality in the social and community
services industry.
The decision will result in an Equal Remuneration Order which will provide percentage-based wage
increases to the award rates of pay for employees in the social and community services and crisis
accommodation classifications under this award.
As you are employed as a <insert stream and classification level> you can expect to receive a <insert
percentage> increase to your base rate of pay. This percentage increase will be implemented in 9
instalments over an 8 year period, starting on 1 December 2012. This increase is on top of any award
wage increases provided by the Commission’s Annual Wage Review.
If your role changes to a different classification level, you will be entitled to a different percentagebased increase.
In addition to this, transitional arrangements under Schedule A of this award have started to take
effect. As your position falls under the <social and community services/crisis accommodation/home
care/family day care> sector these changes <will take/will have taken> effect from <1 February
2012/1 July 2012>. For more information about the transitional provisions, you can contact the Fair
Work Infoline on 13 13 94 or visit www.fairwork.gov.au.
If you would like more information on the equal remuneration decision and process, you can contact
the Commission on 1300 799 675 or visit www.fwc.gov.au.
I trust this information has been helpful. Please contact <insert name> if you have any further
questions.
Regards,
<Insert name>
<Insert job title>