ARA Member Pulse Survey – SDA Junior Pay Rates Application

The ARA is preparing to respond to an application by the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employee’s Association (SDA) to abolish junior pay rates for employees aged 18-20 years and increase pay rates for those aged 17 years and younger - across the retail, fast food and pharmacy awards.

If the SDA’s proposed variations were to be endorsed by the Fair Work Commission, this would mean that employees:
- aged 18 years and over would be paid the adult rate of pay;
- aged 17 years of age would be paid 75% of the adult rate; and
- aged 16 years of age and under would be paid at 50% of the adult rate

Members are invited to take 5-10 minutes to complete this survey to confirm the level of support for these changes and assess the impact on costs, operations and hiring decisions. All responses will be anonymous unless you provide your consent to be contacted by the ARA for the purposes of providing a case study or testimonial.

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* 1. Which award covers your business?

General Retail Industry Award 2020 (MA000004)

Fast Food Industry Award 2020 (MA000003)

Pharmacy Industry Award 2020 (MA000012)

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* 2. What category of retail does your business fall under?

Food and grocery

Liquor

Household goods

Clothing, footwear and personal accessories

Cafes, restaurants and takeaway food services

Department stores

Hair and beauty

Florists

Fuel and convenience stores

Post office and news agency

Other (please specify)

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* 3. What is the size of your business? (by employee)

1-4 employees

5-19 employees

20-199 employees

200-999 employees

More than 1,000 employees

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* 4. What is the size of your business? (by revenue)

Up to $5m revenue

$5m - $99m revenue

$100m - $499m revenue

More than $500m revenue

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* 5. What proportion of your in-store roles are filled by juniors aged 18, 19 or 20 years of age?

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* 6. Do you support the proposed abolition of junior pay rates for employees aged 18, 19 or 20 years of age?

Strongly Support

Support

Neutral

Oppose

Strongly Oppose

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* 7. What proportion of your in-store roles are filled by juniors aged 17 years of age and under?

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* 8. Do you support the proposed increase in junior pay rates for employees aged 17 years of age and younger?

Strongly support

Support

Neural

Oppose

Strongly Oppose

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* 9. How much would your wage costs increase if junior pay rates were changed?

	Increase junior rates for 17 year olds and younger	Abolish junior rates for 18-20 year olds
0% increase	0% increase Increase junior rates for 17 year olds and younger	0% increase Abolish junior rates for 18-20 year olds
<5% increase	<5% increase Increase junior rates for 17 year olds and younger	<5% increase Abolish junior rates for 18-20 year olds
5-10% increase	5-10% increase Increase junior rates for 17 year olds and younger	5-10% increase Abolish junior rates for 18-20 year olds
10-20% increase	10-20% increase Increase junior rates for 17 year olds and younger	10-20% increase Abolish junior rates for 18-20 year olds
>20% increase	>20% increase Increase junior rates for 17 year olds and younger	>20% increase Abolish junior rates for 18-20 year olds

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* 10. Which of the following statements reflect your experience of employing juniors? (select all the apply)

Most juniors require more management time

Most juniors require more on-the-job supervision

Most juniors olds require more on-the-job training

Most juniors require more flexibility to work around other commitments

Most juniors are less productive than older, more experienced employees

None of the above

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* 11. In your opinion, what are the top-three reasons for maintaining distinct junior pay rates? (select up to three responses)

Juniors typically lack necessary skills and experience to perform work effectively and efficiently

Juniors typically lack foundational social and communication-based skills that are necessary to engage with customers

Juniors typically have lower levels of productivity in comparison to older, more experienced employees

Junior pay rates incentive employers to hire and engage candidates that are less experienced and less productive

Junior pay rates help employers offset the higher costs of managing and supervising younger workers

Junior pay rates fairly balance performance with remuneration

Hiring juniors have a range of hidden costs that are not required for older workers

Hiring juniors means I pay more to older workers for supervision

Hiring juniors means I have higher safety and security risks

Other (please specify)

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* 12. What impact would these changes have on your business? (select all that apply)

I would reduce the number of 17 year old and younger, employees I hire

I would reduce the number of 18-20 year olds I hire

I would not make any changes to hiring but would have to reduce overall headcount or hours

I would not make any changes to hiring but would have to increase prices

I would not make any changes to hiring but would have to reduce my margin

These changes won’t affect my business

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* 13. To what extent do you support the proposed increase in junior pay rates if the increase in pay were tied to the attainment of a Certificate 3 qualification?

Strongly support

Support

Neutral

Oppose

Strongly Oppose

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* 14. Do you have any additional comments or insights?

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* 15. Would you be willing to participate in a follow-up interview or focus group to provide more detailed feedback?

Yes

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* 16. If yes, please provide your contact information:

Name

Company

Email Address

Phone Number

Thank you for participating in this survey. Your feedback is crucial in helping the ARA advocate effectively on behalf of businesses.