Financial counsellors are usually employed by government entities or not for profit community organisations. They provide free financial counselling services to people experiencing financial difficulty.

To work as a financial counsellor an employee must, as a minimum:

• have a Diploma of Financial Counselling, and
• be eligible to join their State financial counselling association.

Award coverage for financial counsellors depends on:

• the industry or industries their employer operates in
• the specific duties and qualifications of the employee.

Tip:

This article only deals with financial counsellors who provide free financial counselling services. It doesn’t cover employees of businesses that charge fees for debt relief advice.

It also doesn’t cover financial planners or financial advisers. For more information on these types of employees, see Award coverage for financial planners and advisers.

Industry award coverage

An industry award covers a financial counsellor if:

• their employer operates in the industry defined in the award
• there's a classification which matches the employee's duties and qualifications.

Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award

Financial counsellors working for an employer providing social or community services can be covered by the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award.

Example

Enzo’s a financial counsellor. He works for a charity that provides community services to people in need. He started working with his employer 3 months ago.

Enzo’s services are free. He meets with clients experiencing financial hardship to help them develop budgets, provides tools to manage debt, negotiates with creditors, advocates for them with government agencies and provides emotional support.

Enzo doesn’t provide financial planning advice, advice about lending or legal advice and can’t recommend financial products or services.

Enzo is covered by the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award. He’s classified as a Social and community services employee level 2.

Other industry awards

There are other awards that can apply to employers of financial counsellors.

For example, the Local Government Award can cover financial counsellors who are employed by a local government entity or entity controlled by a local government to provide financial counselling as a community service.

If you think another industry award covers you, you may wish to contact us about your specific circumstances.

No industry award coverage

When there’s no industry award covering the employer, the employee can be:

• covered by the Miscellaneous Award, or
• award free.

Miscellaneous Award

Financial counsellors not covered by an industry award may be covered by the Miscellaneous Award. They’ll be classified based on their duties and qualifications.

The Miscellaneous Award doesn’t cover managerial employees and professional employees. For example, a degree-qualified financial counsellor won’t be covered by the Miscellaneous Award.

Award free employees

Financial counsellors who aren’t covered by an industry award or the Miscellaneous Award, are award free.

They’re entitled to the national minimum wage and the National Employment Standards.