A daily hire operator, engaged to follow the work from job to job, gets a higher hourly rate: $33.17 for an excavator up to 0.5 m³ and $34.12 above 0.5 m³ on civil and general building work (cl 19.3(a)).
A casual operator must be paid for at least 4 hours each engagement (cl 12.3). Time lost to inclement weather on general building and civil sites is paid at the ordinary rate, up to 32 hours in any 4-week period (cl 24).
Which award covers excavator operators
Excavator operators employed by civil, building and earthmoving contractors are covered by the Building and Construction General On-site Award 2020 [MA000020]. Its civil construction stream "includes all related skills involved in earthmoving, plant operation and associated activity" (Schedule A.1.2).
The award grades plant operators by machine and size, not by licence. An excavator up to and including 0.5 cubic metre capacity is CW/ECW 4. An excavator above 0.5 cubic metres, a hydraulic telescopic boom excavator, or a dragline or shovel excavator up to 3 cubic metres is CW/ECW 5. A dragline or shovel excavator from 3 cubic metres is CW/ECW 6 (Schedule A).
Every operator also gets the industry allowance for all purposes — $67.15 a week in general building and civil construction, $53.72 on single and dual occupancy residential work (cl 22.1) — so the bare clause 19.1 rate is never the minimum. An operator who is in charge of plant, such as the only operator on a machine who also does its general repair work, gets another $52.60 a week, which is part of a weekly hire employee's hourly rate (cl 2, 19.3(b), 23.9).
The employer's industry decides the award. An excavator operator working on a mine is covered by the Mining Industry Award, and one employed by a council is usually paid under the Local Government Industry Award or the council's enterprise agreement.
Read the Building and Construction General On-site Award 2020 [MA000020] on the Fair Work Commission’s site (consolidated to 1 July 2026), or see every classification on our MA000020 award rates page.
Excavator Operator award pay rates 2026–27
These rates apply from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2026. Part-time employees are paid the same hourly rates for the hours they work.
Excavator operator pay rates by machine size, 2026–27 (weekly hire)
Weekly = the cl 19.1 classification rate + the all-purpose industry allowance. Hourly is that weekly amount over 38 hours; casual adds the 25% loading (cl 12.4). From the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026.
| Classification | Hourly | Weekly (38 hrs) | Annual | Casual hourly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Excavator up to 0.5 m³ — residential (CW/ECW 4)Single or dual occupancy home sites | $31.79 | $1,208.12 | $62,822 | $39.74 |
| Excavator up to 0.5 m³ — civil and general building (CW/ECW 4)Bucket capacity up to and including 0.5 cubic metres | $32.15 | $1,221.55 | $63,521 | $40.19 |
| Excavator above 0.5 m³ — civil and general building (CW/ECW 5)Also telescopic boom excavators and dragline or shovel up to 3 m³ | $33.07 | $1,256.75 | $65,351 | $41.34 |
| Dragline or shovel excavator from 3 m³ (CW/ECW 6)Civil and general building | $33.91 | $1,288.45 | $66,999 | $42.39 |
Annual is the weekly rate × 52, before tax and before superannuation. Casual hourly includes the 25% casual loading.
Excavator operators in charge of plant, 2026–27 (weekly hire)
The same rows with the $52.60 a week in charge of plant allowance added, as cl 19.3(b) requires for the weekly hire hourly rate. Civil and general building industry allowance.
| Classification | Hourly | Weekly (38 hrs) | Annual | Casual hourly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Excavator up to 0.5 m³ — in charge of plantCivil and general building, plus $52.60 a week | $33.53 | $1,274.15 | $66,256 | $41.91 |
| Excavator above 0.5 m³ — in charge of plantCivil and general building, plus $52.60 a week | $34.46 | $1,309.35 | $68,086 | $43.08 |
Annual is the weekly rate × 52, before tax and before superannuation. Casual hourly includes the 25% casual loading.
Excavator Operator penalty rates and overtime
| When you work | Full-time / part-time | Casual |
|---|---|---|
| Ordinary hours (Monday–Friday, 7 am–6 pm) | 100% | 125% |
| Saturday (overtime) — first 2 hours | 150% | 175% |
| Saturday after 2 hours or after 12 noon; Sunday | 200% | 225% |
| Public holiday | 250% | 275% |
Percentages of the ordinary hourly rate, which already includes the industry allowance and any other all-purpose allowance. Ordinary hours run Monday to Friday (cl 16.1), so all weekend work is overtime (cl 29.12, 30.1). Casual rates are from cl 12.5 and 12.6.
Overtime
- Monday to Friday: 150% for the first 2 hours beyond ordinary hours, then 200% (cl 29.4(a)).
- Saturday: 150% for the first 2 hours, then 200%; all Saturday work after 12 noon is 200% (cl 30.1). Sunday: 200%. Public holiday: 250%.
- Minimum payments: 3 hours for Saturday overtime, 4 hours for Sunday and public holidays, and 3 hours for a recall (cl 29.5, 30.2).
- Casuals: 175% where the permanent rate is 150%, and 225% where it is 200% (cl 12.5).
Work out a shift with penalties or overtime using the overtime pay calculator.
Allowances
| Allowance | Amount | When it applies |
|---|---|---|
| Industry allowance | $67.15 per week (residential $53.72) | All purposes, paid to every employee (cl 22.1); included in the tables. |
| In charge of plant | $52.60 per week | When you are in charge of plant as clause 2 defines it (cl 23.9); included in the second table. |
| Living away from home | $102.92 per day | Or full reimbursement of reasonable accommodation and meal costs if that is more, when the job is too far from home to return each night (cl 25.3(a)). |
Excavator Operator pay after tax
On the Excavator up to 0.5 m³ — civil and general building (CW/ECW 4) rate of $1,221.55 a week, a full-time excavator operator earns $63,521 a year before tax.
| Gross annual pay | $63,521 |
|---|---|
| Income tax (after LITO) | −$9,529 |
| Medicare levy | −$1,270 |
| Take-home per year | $52,722 |
| Take-home per week | $1,014 |
2026–27 resident tax rates with the low income tax offset and the 2% Medicare levy; no HECS-HELP repayment and no Medicare levy surcharge. Superannuation is paid on top by your employer. For the full breakdown see take-home pay on $65,000 (the nearest step to $63,521), or put in your own hours with the weekly pay calculator.
What excavator operators actually earn
Jobs and Skills Australia puts median full-time earnings for Earthmoving Plant Operators (ANZSCO 7212) at $1,900 a week ($45 an hour), against $1,852 a week for all occupations.
Median weekly pay of full-time, non-managerial adult employees before tax and salary sacrifice, from the ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours (May 2025) as published by Jobs and Skills Australia. It reflects what employers actually pay, including people on enterprise agreements or above-award salaries, so it is a market figure, not a legal minimum.
What this page does not show
- Rates for other plant (graders, loaders, dozers, rollers), which the same Schedule A grades from CW/ECW 2 to CW/ECW 8.
- Mining Industry Award and Local Government Industry Award rates for operators employed by mines and councils.
- Enterprise agreement rates, which cover many large civil contractors.
Excavator Operator pay questions
Pay rates for other jobs
How this page is sourced▼
Every minimum rate was read from the Fair Work Commission's consolidated text of the Building and Construction General On-site Award 2020, consolidated to 1 July 2026, on 9 October 2026. Casual rates are the award's own published figures wherever it publishes them. Nothing is estimated.
The median comes from Jobs and Skills Australia’s occupation profile and is a market figure, not an entitlement. Take-home figures use the same tax engine as the rest of this site. Award rates change every 1 July, so re-check after the next Annual Wage Review.
Sources & References
- 1
- 2Pay guides for modern awards— Fair Work Ombudsman
- 3Annual Wage Review 2025–26 decision [2026] FWCFB 3500— Fair Work Commission
- 4
Last verified: 9 October 2026. Our content is based on the latest information from official Australian government sources.
Anita Bell
AuthorFounder & Senior Bookkeeper
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Anita Bell earned her accountancy degree in 2015 and has worked as a senior bookkeeper with Prime Bookkeeping for over 5 years. This built her skills in Australian and New Zealand tax legislation and industry regulations. She is certified in Xero, QuickBooks Online, MYOB, Saasu, Zoho and Reckon One, and works with payroll and rostering software including Gusto, Deputy, Tsheets and KeyPay. She has strong experience in hospitality, building and construction, financial services, real estate, ecommerce, and medical and health services.
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