Plumbing Award [MA000036]

This page is a summary of who the Plumbing Award covers and doesn’t cover. Find a copy of the award at Plumbing Award.

Learn how to calculate pay rates and check entitlements from Find pay rates and entitlements.

On this page:

Who the Plumbing Award covers

The Plumbing Award covers:

  • employers and their employees in the plumbing and/or fire sprinkler fitting services industry
  • employers employing plumbing or fire sprinkler fitting employees.

Plumbing services include:

  • plumbing
  • gas fitting
  • roof plumbing
  • lead burning
  • ship plumbing
  • heating, air-conditioning or ventilation plumbing
  • irrigation installing
  • pipe-fitting
  • domestic engineering work.

This work can be done using prefabricated materials or not. Work can be done on-site (eg. repairs or installations at an established property) or on a construction site.

The plumbing industry also includes any work in or in connection with:

  • sheet lead, galvanised iron, other types of sheet metal or any other materials usually fixed by plumbers
  • lead, wrought, cast or sheet iron, copper, brass or other classes of pipework
  • water (hot and cold), steam, gas, air, vacuum, heating or ventilation applications, fittings, services or installations
  • house, ship, sanitary, chemical or general plumbing or draining and irrigation.

Fire sprinkler fitting services means work on automatic fire sprinkler extinguishers and/or other fire protection systems such as:

  • erecting, fitting, fixing, altering, inspecting, testing, maintaining, retrofitting, overhauling or repairing apparatus, pipes and/or fittings in and/or outside of:
    • buildings
    • ships
    • other structures.

Examples of employers and employees covered by the Plumbing Award include:

  • plumber's labourers and sprinkler fitter’s assistants
  • qualified plumbers and gasfitters
  • apprentice plumbers and gasfitters
  • irrigation installers
  • fire technicians
  • sprinkler fitter tradespersons.

The Plumbing Award also covers labour hire businesses and their employees who are placed with an organisation that provides plumbing and fire sprinkler services (as defined above) and the employer isn't covered by an award that covers this work.

Check the award for full information on who is covered and the classification descriptions

Source reference: Plumbing and Fire Sprinklers Award [MA000036] clauses 2, 4 and schedule A

Who the Plumbing Award doesn't cover

The following employers and employees are not covered by the Plumbing Award:

  • air-conditioning mechanics on a building project
  • insulation installers on a building project.

The Plumbing Award doesn't cover employers and employees when they are covered by the Building and Construction Award.

Check the award for full information on coverage and classifications.

Source reference: Plumbing and Fire Sprinklers Award [MA000036] clauses 2, 4 and schedule A

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