The PSA has received a formal proposal for the making of a standalone Crown Employees (Child Protection) Award for a three-year period from 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2028.

Please see a video from Assistant General Secretary Troy Wright about the creation of a stand-alone Child Protection Award HERE.

You can view the offer documentation by clicking blue button

Child Protection Award Documentation

Voting for the Award opens at 9:00am today and will close at 5:00pm on Thursday 3 July 2025.

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You can vote on the offer below by clicking the red button.

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Revised salary ranges, automatic advancement of increments, 100 new Leading Caseworker roles and the abolishment of forfeited hours.

The proposed stand-alone Child Protection Award provides for the following:

• Salary transition for existing caseworkers – The ability to progress up to three increments for existing caseworkers, resulting in remuneration increases of between 3 per cent to 19 per cent over the next 12 months.
• Additional pay increase next year – A further pay increase of 3 per cent in July 2026
• No more forfeited hours – Where hours worked exceed the carry forward balance for the settlement period, and those hours worked cannot reasonably be taken as flextime or otherwise reduced before the end of the settlement period, overtime rates will apply. Forfeiture of excess hours worked would therefore be avoided, as the Department will face a financial penalty for all forfeited hours.
• 200 additional Caseworkers – A commitment from the NSW Government to recruit 200 new caseworkers.
• The creation of a Leading Caseworker position – Department of Communities and Justice proposes to create an additional 100 leading caseworker roles. This role will be remunerated at a rate equivalent to Clerk Grade 8.
• New grading for Manager Casework – The Manager Casework grading is proposed to be revised from a salary equivalent of a Clerk Grade 9 to a salary equivalent of a Clerk Grade 9/10.

We encourage members to review the offer documentation to see full details of the proposed Award.

Where to from here?

If the Award offer is accepted by PSA members, the new Award will be made via consent and the remuneration increases and salary transition will take affect from the first full pay period after the 1 July 2025.

If the Award offer is rejected by PSA members, staff will stay on the Crown Employees (Public Service Conditions of Employment) Reviewed Award 2009 and existing conditions of employment and salary scale.  The making of a new Award would then most likely require Conciliation and Arbitration in the Industrial Relations Commission over the next 12 months.