Health Professionals Award Changes: How to Prepare Before 1 October

Hello and welcome to Episode 341 of The People Powered Business Podcast.

If you employ health professionals under the Health Professionals and Support Services Award, whether that's physios, OTs, psychologists or anyone else on that award's long list, you are only weeks away from the biggest change this award has seen in over twenty years. If you have been putting off looking at it, hoping it might quietly sort itself out, this episode is your sign to stop.

I'm recording this the same week the Fair Work Commission handed down its final confirmation of the new rates, so this has genuinely been years in the making and it is now locked in for the 1st of October 2026. This is part of the Commission's gender undervaluation review, which looked at a handful of modern awards covering historically female dominated professions and found this one had been undervalued for years compared with equivalent male dominated industries. The fix is a complete overhaul of how health professionals get classified, moving away from the old system, which leaned heavily on time served and some pretty vague guidance, to a structure built on actual qualifications under the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) and years of experience in the profession itself.

This is not a pay rate tweak. Every single health professional you employ, even if you already pay above award and even if you only have three staff members, needs to be mapped against this new structure before the deadline. I walk you through the five steps to do that properly in this episode: build your staff list, confirm everyone's qualification and AQF level, calculate their actual years of experience in the profession (not years with your business), map each person to their correct new classification, and have the conversation with your team before the change lands, not after. I'll also flag the one thing that catches almost everyone out. Plenty of people currently sitting at level two are about to become a level one under the new structure, through no fault or change of their own, and there are protections in place so nobody's pay can go backwards.

If you would rather have this handled properly rather than figuring it out alone, there are three ways I can help.

1. I'm running a live implementation workshop on the 24th of September to walk you through all five steps hands on. Register here: www.peoplepoweredbusiness.com.au/hpssworkshop 
2. You can join our People Powered HR community for ongoing access to the reclassification tool and support, all of the details are here: www.peoplepoweredbusiness.com.au/pphr 
3. Or you can email me directly for one on one help if you want someone to just take it off your plate. Just email me at [email protected] 

In this episode we cover:

• Why the Fair Work Commission has completely rewritten the health professionals classification structure, and why now
• The five steps to reclassify every health professional in your business before 1 October
• Why years of experience in the profession, not years with your business, now drives classification
• What happens to someone's pay if their new classification would otherwise mean a step down
• Where to get support, from a hands-on implementation workshop to one on one help

Links & Resources:

• DM Kristy-Lee on Instagram @kristy.lee.billett
• Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristyleebillett/ 
• Email me at [email protected] 
• Book a 15-minute clarity call: https://calendly.com/kristyleebillett/chat 

What this episode covers

This episode breaks down the new classification structure for health professionals under the Health Professionals and Support Services Award, effective 1 October 2026. It explains why the Fair Work Commission made the change, what it means for employers of physios, occupational therapists, psychologists and other allied health professionals, and the practical steps required to reclassify a team correctly before the deadline.

Key insight from this episode

Under the new classification structure, many employees currently sitting at level two will move to level one, not because their role, performance or pay has changed, but because the qualification and experience based system, built on the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF), replaces years of service as the primary classification factor. Existing pay cannot be reduced as a result of reclassification, which makes clear communication with affected team members essential.

What you'll take away

• How to confirm each health professional's AQF qualification level under the updated award
• Why years of experience in the profession, not years of service with the business, now determines classification
• The five step process for mapping a team to the new classification structure before 1 October 2026
• What protections apply if a reclassification would otherwise reduce an employee's pay
• Where to access further support, including a hands on implementation workshop and ongoing membership resources