Rostering Software

Rosters that price every shift correctly from the start

Most rostering tools place shifts and hope payroll sorts out the money. Engage WorkForce is award-aware rostering software for Australia and New Zealand — weekend, night and public-holiday penalty rates attach to every shift as you roster, so the cost of the week is right before anyone works it.

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Public holidays per AU state & territory July rate updates without a developer Flows into timesheets & payroll prep

Pay Rules — Guard Template Active

MF Monday – Friday Base hourly rate · day window 06:00 – 18:00 Weekday

N Night Window Loading applies 22:00 – 06:00, any weekday Night rate

PH Grand Final Friday · VIC Public-holiday rate — Victoria only PH rate

Day-rules per template

Award interpretation, built in

The roster already knows what each hour costs

Pay templates, time windows and state holiday calendars do the award interpretation while you roster — so nobody re-prices the week in a spreadsheet afterwards.

01 — Day rules & time windows

Penalty rates by day, loadings by hour

Every pay template carries separate rates for Monday to Friday, Saturday, Sunday, nights and public holidays. Time-window pay groups go finer still — a night loading between 22:00 and 06:00 fires automatically when a shift crosses into that window. Approved hours then flow into payroll preparation already priced.

✓Seven day-rules per template — weekday, Saturday, Sunday and public-holiday rates kept separate
✓Time-window pay groups for night loadings and split day/evening rates
✓Priced at roster time — the cost of the week is visible before it's worked

TuTue 09:00 – 17:00Weekday day rateBase

SaSat 07:00 – 15:00Saturday penalty rate, all daySaturday

NiThu 22:00 – 06:00Night loading via 22:00 – 06:00 windowNight

02 — State-aware holidays

Melbourne gets the PH rate. Sydney doesn't.

Public holidays in Australia don't arrive nationally — they arrive state by state. Engage WorkForce keeps a holiday calendar per state and territory, so a Melbourne shift on a Victorian public holiday prices at PH rates while a Sydney shift on the same date stays at standard rates. New Zealand teams get the same treatment for NZ holidays.

✓Holiday calendars per AU state & territory — each site resolves against its own region
✓Automatic PH pricing — the day-rule flips to public-holiday rates without anyone touching the roster
✓Holiday markers on the schedule so planners see the expensive days coming

VICDocklands site · MelbourneVIC public holiday — PH rate appliedPH rate

NSWCBD tower · SydneySame date — standard weekday rateBase

NZAuckland siteNZ holiday calendar, same logicLocalised

03 — Versioned award tables

July rate changes, handled by you

Every July, Fair Work publishes new award rates — and in most systems that means waiting on a vendor or a developer. In Engage WorkForce, award rate tables are versioned: an administrator enters the new rates, sets the effective date and activates the version. Past periods keep the rates that applied at the time, so back-dated corrections stay honest.

✓Admin-managed rate versions — no developer, no release, no waiting
✓Effective-dated history — historical timesheets resolve against the rates of their day
✓Above-award friendly — businesses on EBAs can keep their own rates in the same structure

26FY26 rate tableEffective 1 Jul · currently activeActive

27FY27 rate tableEntered by admin · awaiting activationDraft

25FY25 rate tableArchived — still resolves old periodsArchive

Worked example

One week, priced by the rules

Every scenario below resolves automatically — and carries through when staff clock in via time & attendance.

Shift scenario	Rule that fires	Result on the paysheet
Tuesday, 09:00 – 17:00	Monday–Friday day-rule	Base weekday rate
Saturday, 07:00 – 15:00	Saturday day-rule	Saturday penalty rate, all hours
Sunday, 07:00 – 15:00	Sunday day-rule	Sunday penalty rate, all hours
Thursday, 22:00 start	Time-window pay group 22:00 – 06:00	Night loading on the windowed hours
Melbourne shift on a VIC public holiday	State holiday calendar override	Public-holiday rate — VIC sites only
Same date in Sydney	No NSW holiday on the calendar	Standard rate — no false PH cost

Built for ANZ awards

Interpretation you don't have to carry in your head

7 day-rules

Weekday, Saturday, Sunday and public-holiday rates kept separate on every pay template

24/7

Time-window pay groups price every hour of the day, including overnight loadings

8 regions

Public holidays recognised per Australian state and territory, plus New Zealand

0 devs

Developer help needed when Fair Work publishes new award rates each July

Getting started

From award document to priced roster

Set up pay templates once

Capture your day rules and time windows — weekday, weekend, night and public-holiday rates — as reusable pay templates attached to sites and staff.

Roster with the rules attached

Build the week from reusable patterns. Approved leave blocks people from the grid, and every placed shift already carries its pricing.

Publish to the staff roster app

Shifts land on employee phones instantly, clock-ins flow into timesheets, and approval pushes priced hours straight to paysheets.

See the full workflow →

Common questions

Award-aware rostering, answered

How are penalty rates applied to a roster?

Each shift carries a pay template with separate rates for Monday to Friday, Saturday, Sunday, nights and public holidays. Time-window pay groups add loadings such as a night rate between 22:00 and 06:00, so penalty rates are priced into the roster the moment a shift is placed — not discovered at payroll time.

What happens when Fair Work updates award rates in July?

Award rate tables in Engage WorkForce are versioned. When new rates are published, an administrator enters them with an effective date and activates the new version — no developer required. Historical periods keep the rates that applied at the time.

How do state-based public holidays work?

Engage WorkForce keeps a public holiday calendar per Australian state and territory. A Melbourne shift on a Victorian public holiday prices at public-holiday rates, while a Sydney shift on the same date stays at standard rates unless NSW also observes the holiday.

What is the difference between rostering and employee scheduling?

Scheduling is the day-to-day work of building, publishing and filling shifts. Rostering adds the award-aware pay layer — day rules, penalty rates and holiday calendars — so every pattern you publish is priced correctly. In Engage WorkForce the two work as one flow.

Keep exploring

Ready when you are

See your award rules running in Engage WorkForce

Book a personalised walkthrough with our Australian team. Bring your pay rules — we'll roster a public-holiday weekend live and show you the pricing.

Book a Free Demo See How It Works

No lock-in contracts · ANZ-based support