Ask three labour hire providers what an hour costs and you will get three numbers that cannot be compared, because each one bundles a different set of things. The bill rate is not a price in the normal sense. It is four separate layers compressed into a single figure, and the only way to compare quotes honestly is to pull them apart.
Layer one: the award wage
Every hour starts with a Modern Award rate for the classification the worker sits in. That rate is public, and it is the same for every provider. There is no version of the market where one agency legitimately pays less for the same classification than another. Entry adult casual rates across the awards we cover run roughly from the low thirties to the high forties per hour depending on the award, and you can check any of them against our casual award rate tables.
Layer two: loading and penalties
Casual employees receive a loading on top of the base rate, most commonly 25% under Modern Awards, in place of paid leave entitlements. On top of that sit the penalties for when the work happens: evenings, weekends, public holidays and overtime, all defined by the award rather than negotiated. This is the layer that makes a Sunday hour and a Wednesday hour genuinely different products, and it is the layer most often flattened into a single blended rate in a quote.
Flattening is not automatically dishonest, but it means a quote built on a weekday assumption will not survive a roster that includes weekends. If you run weekend trade, ask for the rate on the days you actually operate.
Layer three: the on-costs
These are the statutory costs of employing somebody, and they are unavoidable for any compliant provider:
- Superannuation. Currently 12% on ordinary time earnings.
- Workers compensation. A premium set by state scheme and industry classification. Warehouse and construction work costs materially more to cover than office work.
- Payroll tax. State based, with different rates and different thresholds, and it applies to labour hire wages in most states.
On-costs are the reason a $35 award rate is never a $35 cost. They are also why quotes from providers operating in different states are not directly comparable even for the same role.
Layer four: the margin
The provider needs to make money, and that margin is legitimate. The question is only whether you can see it. In the traditional model it is inside the bill rate, and industry guides put typical markups somewhere in the 20% to 35% range depending on role, volume and how the negotiation went. Because it is bundled, two clients of the same agency can pay materially different effective margins for identical work, and neither knows.
MyGig publishes its number instead: a flat 15% service fee on wages and on-costs, the same for every client, itemised on the estimate before you book. The reasoning is on our pricing page, and the comparison against the traditional model is on MyGig vs traditional labour hire.
How to compare two quotes
- Ask for the award and classification each rate is built on. If the provider cannot name it, the rest of the quote is guesswork.
- Ask for the rate on the specific days and times you roster, not a blended weekday rate.
- Ask which on-costs are included and at what percentages, and in which state the payroll sits.
- Ask what the margin is. A provider who will not answer is telling you something.
- Ask what triggers a fee beyond the hourly rate: placement, temp-to-perm transfer, cancellation, minimum engagement.
Free download: the 2026 Casual Rates Cardputs every award’s entry casual rate on one printable sheet - or browse the always-current casual award rates online.
Run your own numbers
Rather than take our word for the arithmetic, put your own roster through it. The shift cost calculator prices a single shift for a specific date and time with every layer broken out, and the savings calculator compares the annual cost of running casuals in-house, through a traditional agency, and through MyGig, with every assumption editable and sourced.
Quick answers
What is a typical labour hire markup in Australia?
Industry guides generally put traditional agency markups in the 20% to 35% range, negotiated per client and bundled inside the hourly bill rate rather than shown separately. MyGig publishes a flat 15% service fee on wages and on-costs instead.
What are on-costs in labour hire?
The statutory costs of employing someone: superannuation, workers compensation premium and payroll tax. They sit on top of the award wage and loading, and they vary by state and by industry classification, which is why quotes across states are not directly comparable.
Why do two agencies quote different rates for the same role?
Rarely because of the award wage, which is public and identical. The difference is usually some combination of margin, which state the payroll sits in, which on-costs are included, and whether the quote is blended across days or priced for the hours you actually roster.
Does labour hire cost more than hiring directly?
It depends on utilisation. Direct employment carries recruitment, onboarding, leave, payroll administration and the cost of paying someone through quiet weeks. Labour hire converts that into a per-hour cost you only incur when the work exists. The savings calculator runs both against your own numbers.