On this page (9 sections)
- Who is covered and what the roles are called
- NSW SLSO pay rates from July 2026
- SAM and Business Manager rates
- How NSW support staff are paid over the school holidays
- What a part-time SLSO takes home
- Progression: how SLSOs move up the steps
- Qualifications and getting a job
- Pay rises and bargaining status
- FAQs
The short answer
A NSW public school School Learning Support Officer (SLSO) earns $38.33 an hour at step 1, rising to $44.53 at step 4, from the first pay period on or after 1 July 2026. Full time is 31.25 hours a week, so step 1 equals about $62,500 a year. Most SLSOs are part-time and are paid the hourly rate for their contracted hours.
- Rates come from the Crown Employees (School Administrative and Support Staff) Award 2024.
- School Administrative Officers (SAOs) get a single rate of $41.86 an hour.
- Permanent staff are paid in 26 equal fortnightly pays, including the school holidays.
- The award's last scheduled rise (3%) has been paid. It expires on 30 June 2027.
Who is covered and what the roles are called
Support staff in NSW public schools are covered by the Crown Employees (School Administrative and Support Staff) Award 2024, usually called the SASS Award. It sets pay and conditions for SLSOs (the NSW name for teacher aides and learning support staff), office staff, administrative managers, Aboriginal Education Officers and school Business Managers. The PSA NSW is the union that negotiates it.
General Assistants are not covered by the SASS Award. They have a separate award, which we have not yet checked, so their rates are not shown here.
NSW SLSO pay rates from July 2026
The award publishes hourly rates. The annual figures below are worked out with the award's own formula (cl 5.3): hourly rate x weekly hours x 52.17857. For SLSOs, SAOs and AEOs, full time is 31.25 hours a week. The short-term temporary rate includes the 15% loading paid instead of recreation leave to staff employed for one term or less.
Source: SASS Award 2024, Schedule 1 (rates from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026). The department's own Schedule 1 web page still shows 2022 rates and is marked 'under review', so use the award PDF.
SAM and Business Manager rates
School Administrative Managers work 33 hours 20 minutes a week and Business Managers work 35 hours a week, so their annual figures use those hours. A SAM's level depends on the size of the school's admin staffing entitlement: under 1.4 FTE of SAM and SAO staff is SAM 1, 1.4 to under 1.8 is SAM 2, 1.8 to under 10 is SAM 3, and 10 or more is SAM 4.
Selected Business Manager steps. See the school business manager salary guide for every step and other states.
How NSW support staff are paid over the school holidays
This is the part most new SLSOs ask about. Permanent and long-term temporary SASS staff are paid 26 equal fortnightly pays across the whole year, holidays included. The fortnightly amount is your hourly rate x weekly hours x 52.17857 / 26. You do not get a pay gap in January.
Behind the scenes, your pay for school vacations is earned as you work. The award (cl 6) uses the formula N = C x S / T: vacation days earned (N) equal the student vacation days (C) multiplied by your days of service in the preceding period (S), divided by the term days in the year (T). If you work every term day, you are paid for every vacation day. If you start part-way through the year, you earn a share.
Permanent or long-term temporary
- 26 equal pays a year
- Vacation pay accrues as you work (N = C x S / T)
- Long-term temps are paid in vacations at the same rate as term
- Normal hourly rate
Short-term temporary (one term or less)
- Paid only for hours worked
- 15% loading instead of recreation leave
- No pay in the school holidays
- SLSO 1 short-term rate is $44.09 an hour
Hours can be averaged over a 10-week term for most SASS staff, but not for SLSOs (cl 8.4 and 8.6). Your ordinary hours fall between 7.30am and 6pm on school days. For a cross-state view, see are teacher aides paid in school holidays.
What a part-time SLSO takes home
Most SLSO jobs are part-time, often 0.6 to 0.8 of full time. Here is a typical 25-hour week at step 1, using the award formula and 2026–27 tax rates.
SLSO 1 working 25 hours a week (0.8 FTE)
- Hourly rate
- $38.33
- Annual pay ($38.33 x 25 x 52.17857)
- $50,000
- Gross per fortnight
- $1,923
- Income tax after low income tax offset
- $5,270
- Medicare levy (2%)
- $1,000
2026–27 rates, no HELP debt, no salary sacrifice. Your employer also pays 12% super on top (about $6,000). At full time (31.25 hours) SLSO 1 is $62,500, which leaves about $52,043 a year or $2,002 a fortnight after tax.
Free calculator
Work out your own SLSO pay
Choose NSW, your step and your weekly hours to see your fortnightly pay before and after tax.
Open the support staff pay calculatorProgression: how SLSOs move up the steps
From SLSO 1 to SLSO 4
- 1
Start at SLSO 1
New SLSOs start on step 1 (cl 4.5), whatever their hours.
- 2
One step a year
You move up one step after each year of continuous employment, as long as your performance is satisfactory (cl 7.2). Part-time hours don't slow this down.
- 3
Reach SLSO 4 after three years
Step 4 ($44.53 an hour) is the top of the SLSO scale. That is 16% more than step 1.
- 4
Move into a different role
Beyond SLSO 4, pay rises come from a different classification: Student Health Support ($46.06), AEO, SAM or Business Manager.
Qualifications and getting a job
The SASS Award sets pay by role, not by qualification, so a certificate does not by itself move you up a step. Schools advertise SLSO roles individually, and the selection criteria are set by each job. Some ask for experience with students with disability or a Certificate III or IV in education support; check the job ad. Every role needs a Working With Children Check. See how to become a teacher aide for the steps.
Pay rises and bargaining status
The July 2026 rise was the last one scheduled under the award. The award's nominal expiry is 30 June 2027, and it has a no-extra-claims clause (cl 23) until then. We have not seen a new PSA claim yet, so bargaining for the next award is expected during 2027. We will add it to the teacher pay rise tracker when it starts. Teachers' pay is a separate deal: see NSW teacher pay.
Frequently asked questions
How much does an SLSO get paid per hour in NSW?
What is the full-time SLSO salary in NSW?
Do SLSOs get paid in the school holidays?
How long does it take to reach SLSO 4?
What does a School Administrative Officer earn in NSW?
When is the next pay rise for NSW school support staff?
Are General Assistants covered by the SASS Award?
Sources we checked · last verified 2026-10-17
About this page
Written and fact-checked by the TeacherPay AU Editorial Team against the enterprise agreements, awards and official pages listed in the sources. It is general information, not personal financial, tax or legal advice. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we'll fix it, usually within a day. See our editorial policy and how we calculate.
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