Wage Rates
New Zealand
The minimum rate of pay as of 1 April 2026 is $23.95 per hour in New Zealand.
More information on wages can be found on the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s website here.
For an overview of locksmith minimum wages in New Zealand, download the pay guide above.
Australia
The Adult Tradespersons rate of pay as of 1 July 2025 is $1068.40 per week ($28.12 per hour).
The Master Locksmiths Association has put together a document detailing the minimum wage rates by stage for apprentices as at 1 July 2025.
The Fair Work Ombudsman has put together a tool to help assist you with ensuring you are paying and assessing your payroll accurately. The PACT “Pay and Conditions Tool”:
Click here - P.A.C.T - calculate.fairwork.gov.au/
More information on wages and allowances can be found at:
For an overview of locksmith minimum wages in Australia, download the pay guide using the blue button above.
Australian Awards
Minimum wages and conditions are set out in Awards (also known as Modern Awards).
Most Locksmiths and Apprentices are covered under the Modern Manufacturing & Associated Industries & Occupations Award 2020 (MA000010). This Fair Work Commission consolidated modern award incorporates all amendments up to and including 1 January 2025 (PR780202).
Clause(s) affected by the most recent variation(s): Schedule A—Classification Structure and Definitions
Most Administration staff and support staff are covered under the Clerks – Private Sector Award 2020 (MA000002)
Download MA000002If you are unsure of your wage obligations, please contact the Fair Work Ombudsmen on 13 13 94, or go the Fair Work Website:
Individual Flexibility Arrangements (IFAs)
Individual Flexibility Arrangements (IFAs) are used in the Australian locksmith industry. IFAs are designed to allow for variations to modern awards or enterprise agreements in order to meet the genuine needs of employers and individual employees, while ensuring minimum entitlements and protections are not undermined.
Under Clause 5 of both the Manufacturing Award and the Building Award, an IFA may be used to make bespoke arrangements to suit the needs of a locksmith. These arrangements may include the following:
- Arrangements for when work is performed, such as working hours
- Overtime rates
- Penalty rates
- Allowances
- Leave loading
An IFA must not, however, diminish an employee’s entitlements under the Awards; rather it must improve their rights, conditions and entitlements.
In practical terms, a locksmith may agree to vary and/or replace their overtime payment entitlements with an entitlement to a proportion of revenue for afterhours work – provided they are better off overall at the time the IFA is made than if the agreement had been made under the Manufacturing Award (Clause 5.5) or the Building Award (Clause 5.5).
IMPORTANT NOTE – the recommendation to Business Members is that overtime payment entitlements are observed in accordance with the Awards.
Victorian Portable Long Service Benefits Scheme
Victoria’s Portable Long Service Scheme requires employers of some Victorian workers in the security sector to pay a levy towards long service entitlements that workers are able to carry with them between roles. The Scheme applies to locksmiths whose primary work is with safes and vaults, or electronic security.
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Overtime and stand-by rates
Overtime Work – Manufacturing Award
Under the Manufacturing Award, the overtime rate is time and half for the first three hours and double time thereafter (Clause 32.2).
Please note, the requirement for a minimum of four hours overtime to be paid only applies where an employee has been recalled to work overtime after completing their shift for the day (Clause 32.13 (b)).
Overtime Work – Building Award
Under the Building Award, the overtime rate is time and half for the first two hours and double time thereafter.
Saturday Work – Manufacturing Award
Under the Manufacturing Award, the overtime rate payable for Saturday work is time and half for the first three hours and double time thereafter, with a minimum payment of four hours unless the overtime is continuous with overtime commenced on the previous day (Clause 32.5).
Saturday Work – Building Award
Under the Building Award, the overtime rate payable for Saturday work is time and half for the first two hours and double time thereafter. In addition, all work after 12 noon must be paid at double time (Clause 30.1 (a)).
An employee required to work on a Saturday must be awarded at least three hours work, or be paid for three hours work at the appropriate rate (Clause 30.2 (a)).
Sunday Work – Manufacturing Award
Under the Manufacturing Award, the overtime rate payable for Sunday work is double time, with a minimum payment of three hours (Clause 32.6).
Sunday Work – Building Award
Under the Building Award, the overtime rate payable for Sunday work is double time, with a minimum payment of four hours (Clause 30.2 (c)).
Public Holiday Work – Manufacturing Award
Under the Manufacturing Award, the overtime rate payable on Public Holidays is double time and a half, with a minimum payment of three hours (Clause 32.7 (a)).
Public Holiday Work – Building Award
Under the Building Award, the overtime rate payable on Public Holidays is double time and a half (Clause 30.1(e)), with a minimum payment of four hours (Clause 30.2 (d)).
Ordinary Hourly Rate
The rates payable under the Awards are calculated based on the “ordinary hourly rate” (OHR).
The OHR is defined in Clause 2 of the Manufacturing Award and elaborated on in Clause 20. Clause 20 sets out the minimum hourly rates payable based on an employee’s respective classification level. Trade qualified locksmiths are classified as C10 under the Manufacturing Award. The OHR is defined in Clause 2 of the Building Award and expanded upon in Clause 19.1 (a).
Business owners tend to pay above Award rates for trade qualified tradespersons. It is important to the note that for the purposes of overtime payments, the OHR is the actual rate paid. This may be different (it cannot be less) than the amount stipulated in the Award.
Tradespersons cannot be paid at an above Award rate for their normal/base working week and only receive overtime rates based on the minimum rates under the Award. The hourly rate for overtime must be based on their actual hourly rate.
On-call Payments
Locksmith on call – no after-hours work undertaken
Clause 32.14 of the Manufacturing Award stipulates that locksmiths are entitled to payment for standing by for work after hours (being on-call), subject to any prevailing customs.
There is no equivalent Clause in the Building Award.
Notwithstanding, as being on-call is a common practice and thus a prevailing custom of the locksmithing industry, locksmiths who are on-call and receive no after-hours work are not ordinarily entitled to any payment for standing by without having completed any work. This does not prevent a business owner from paying their employee a standby allowance, however, this is not a requirement under the Manufacturing Award.
Locksmith on call – single job received
The Manufacturing Award states that an employee recalled to work overtime must be paid for a minimum of four hours (time and a half for the first 3 hours and double time thereafter). Where an employee is required to hold themselves in readiness for a call back (call out), as is commonplace for locksmiths, they must be paid a minimum of three hours at the appropriate overtime rate (Clause 32.13 (c)).
The Building Award stipulates that an employee must be paid for a minimum of three hours work at the appropriate rates for each time the employee is recalled (Clause 29.5 (a)).
Example: Under both Awards, a locksmith who is on-call and undertakes a job that takes 90 minutes to complete, is entitled to a payment for a minimum of three hours at the appropriate rate. If this 90-minute job was undertaken on a Sunday, the locksmith is entitled to three hours at double time.
Locksmith on call – multiple jobs received
Pursuant to Clause 32.13 (d) of the Manufacturing Award, a locksmith is entitled to a payment for minimum of three hours at the appropriate overtime rate (Clause 32.13 (c)) for each job undertaken.
Under the Building Award, an employee must be paid for a minimum of three hours work at the appropriate rates for each time they are recalled (Clause 29.5 (a)).
Example: Under both Awards, a locksmith who is on-call and undertakes a job at 6.00 pm that takes 2 hours to complete and then receives another job at 10.00 pm that takes an hour to complete, is entitled to a payment for a minimum of three hours at the appropriate rate for each of the jobs undertaken.
Locksmith required to work overtime to complete a job (unscheduled overtime)
There are times when a locksmith may be required to work unscheduled overtime to complete a job that could not be completed within normal working hours.
Under the Manufacturing Award, the overtime rate is time and half for the first three hours and double time thereafter (Clause 32.2).
Under the Building Award, the overtime rate is time and half for the first two hours and double time thereafter.
Example: Under both Awards, a locksmith who normally finishes their shift at 5.00 pm (Monday to Friday) but needs to work until 7.00 pm to complete a job, is entitled to a payment for two hours at the appropriate rate, in this case at time and a half.
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