Linfox Pay Rates 2026: Driver & Distribution Centre Pay
What Linfox drivers and DC workers should be paid in 2026 — Road Transport and Distribution Award grades, Storage Services rates, penalties, and where Linfox's TWU and UWU agreements sit.
Senior Workplace Relations Writer · GradDip Employment Relations, Griffith University
What covers Linfox workers — award or agreement?
Linfox employs around 10,000 people in Australia, and most operational roles are covered by enterprise agreements. The backbone is the Linfox and Transport Workers Union Road Transport and Distribution Centres Agreement 2023 (approved January 2024), which passed its nominal expiry on 30 June 2026 — it keeps operating while the replacement is bargained, and that bargaining window is now.
Newer site and stream deals are already landing: the Linfox and UWU – Coles NDC Victoria Agreement 2025 (approved August 2025, nominal expiry August 2029), the Coles RDC Victoria Agreement 2025 (approved July 2025), and the Linfox and UWU Retail and FMCG National Distribution Centres Agreement 2025 (nominal expiry 1 September 2027).
The awards underneath are the Road Transport and Distribution Award 2020 (MA000038) and, in warehousing, the Storage Services and Wholesale Award 2020 (MA000084). Everything below is that floor.
Driver award floor by grade (1 July 2026)
Adult minimums under the transport award's general stream (38-hour week), operative from 1 July 2026:
| Grade (typical work) | Permanent | Casual (incl. 25%) |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 1 (courier/van, light rigid) | $26.87/hr | $33.59/hr |
| Grade 2 (rigid over 4.5t) | $27.51/hr | $34.39/hr |
| Grade 3 (heavy rigid) | $27.83/hr | $34.79/hr |
| Grade 5 (semitrailer) | $28.67/hr | $35.84/hr |
| Grade 7 (B-double) | $29.42/hr | $36.78/hr |
| Grade 8 (road train) | $30.28/hr | $37.85/hr |
Source: Fair Work Commission modern awards pay database. One Linfox-specific wrinkle: fuel tanker work falls under the award's oil distribution stream, which runs a 35-hour week — the same weekly rate over fewer hours makes the hourly floor higher (Grade 1 is $29.17/hr instead of $26.87). Linfox's fuel arm also has its own deal, the Linfox Australia (Bulk Petroleum) Agreement 2024.
DC and warehouse rates
In Linfox-run distribution centres the floor is either the transport award's distribution facility stream — $27.83/hr (level 1), $28.32 (level 2), $29.42 (level 3) — or the Storage Services and Wholesale Award: Storeworker grade 1 $27.08/hr on commencement to $27.72 after 12 months, grade 2 $27.97, grade 3 $28.77, grade 4 $29.61. Casuals add 25%.
The site agreement names which floor applies and sets the actual rates above it — for the Coles Victorian DCs, that's the NDC and RDC agreements linked above.
Overtime, weekends and shifts
Transport award penalties for full-time and part-time employees: overtime at 150% for the first two hours and 200% after; Saturday 150%; Sunday 200%; public holiday overtime 250% (300% on Good Friday and Christmas Day); afternoon shift 117.5% and night shift 130%. Casuals: Saturday 175%, Sunday 225%, public holidays 275% (loading included).
DC agreements commonly fold shift loadings into site rates — the test is always whether the package beats the award overall. Price a specific roster with our penalty rates calculator.
Common Linfox pay issues
Worth checking on your payslip:
- Grade vs vehicle — pay follows the biggest combination you're required to drive, not your usual run.
- Pre-start and queue time — checks, load restraint and waiting at customer DCs are paid work.
- Expired-agreement drift — the 2023 TWU agreement's scheduled rises ran out at 30 June 2026; the award floor still rises every 1 July.
- Wrong stream — tanker drivers paid general-stream hourly rates instead of the 35-hour oil distribution stream.
What to do if you're underpaid
Keep run sheets and six months of payslips, price the gap with our back-pay calculator, and raise it in writing with your site manager. The TWU or UWU can act on agreement matters. Unresolved, the Fair Work Ombudsman (13 13 94) recovers underpayments at no cost — up to six years back.
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Official resources
General information and estimates only — not legal, financial or tax advice. Always check your specific award, agreement or contract, or a qualified professional, before you rely on the result.
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Nine years in Australian workplace relations — Queensland hospitality HR, then retail ER in Brisbane and Northern NSW. Graduate Diploma in Employment Relations (Griffith University, 2018). Writes about award interpretation, underpayment recovery, and casual conversion. Member of the AHRI since 2019. Based in Paddington, Brisbane.