Farm manager jobs in Australia range from assistant managers on mixed farms to herd managers on dairies and orchard managers on horticulture properties. Neither the Horticulture Award nor the Pastoral Award has a classification called farm manager, so pay is often set by contract, and you should ask in writing which instrument covers the role. Register with CrossNation and upload your CV, and a recruiter reviews it as employers brief us. Listings are not job offers.
There are no open farm manager roles listed with CrossNation right now. New roles are added as employers brief us, so create a profile to be matched when one opens.
A farm manager runs a farm or part of one for an owner. The work usually covers planning the season, rostering and supervising staff, managing livestock or crops, keeping records, buying inputs, meeting safety and biosecurity rules and reporting to the owner. Some managers are hands-on and drive machinery, while others spend more time on budgets and staff. The title also covers assistant farm managers, herd managers on dairies, cropping managers, orchard or packhouse managers and property managers on pastoral stations, so read what the advertisement expects and how many people you will supervise.
The Horticulture Award and the Pastoral Award set minimum rates for listed classifications. Neither award text contains a classification titled farm manager. The Horticulture Award's highest level, Level 5, is for an employee who uses a trade qualification and coordinates and schedules work in a team, and the Pastoral Award's highest level in the farm and livestock hand table, level 8, includes a senior dairy operator who supervises and maintains the operation of a dairy farm under the direction of the owner or manager. Many managers are therefore employed on individual contracts, sometimes above the award. Ask which instrument covers you, how overtime and on-call hours are treated and whether housing is part of the package.
Both awards pay a leading hand allowance to an employee who is appointed to take charge of other employees, based on how many people they lead. The Horticulture Award sets bands from two to six employees up to more than twenty, and the Pastoral Award pays it to a leading hand in charge of two or more people. That is a supervisor's payment, not a manager's salary, but it shows that the awards expect a step up in pay when you lead a crew. Our farm worker pay guide prints the allowance with the date it applies from. For a manager's package, compare the written offer with the award for your duties and check Fair Work for the latest rates.
Managers make up a larger share of the workforce in farming regions than in the cities. In the ABS Wheat Belt area 20.7% of employed people were managers, against 12.3% across Western Australia. In Victoria's North West area the share was 18.3% and in Warrnambool and South West 18.1%, against 14.0% across Victoria. The Census group covers every kind of manager, so it is a signal that farm businesses are owner-run and self-managed, not a count of farm manager jobs. Vacancies tend to sit in dairy, cropping, horticulture and livestock regions.
Lead with the type of enterprise, its size and the number of staff you supervised, then your machinery and livestock experience, records and software you used, safety and biosecurity responsibilities, licences and tickets, and references from previous owners. CrossNation is a recruitment agency serving employers across Australia. We recruit staff who become the employer's own employees, and we do not supply seasonal crews. There may be no matching role open today, so register, upload your CV and say which regions and enterprises suit you.
Registration: No national licence or registration. Employers may ask for tickets such as a high risk work licence, first aid and chemical application training. Farm managers are not registered with a national regulator. Employers list the licences and tickets they need in the advertisement.
Pay and conditions: set by state enterprise agreements or individual contracts rather than a single modern award.
The Horticulture Award text contains no classification called manager. The Pastoral Award text uses the word manager only in its description of a senior dairy operator, who works under the direction of the owner or manager.
A Level 5 employee works under minimal supervision, coordinates and schedules approved work in a team, and possesses and uses a trade qualification.
Source: Fair Work Ombudsman: Horticulture Award 2020 [MA000028]
Both awards pay an allowance to a leading hand based on the number of employees in charge. The Horticulture Award's bands run from 2 to 6 employees up to more than 20.
Source: Fair Work Ombudsman: Horticulture Award 2020 [MA000028]
20.7% of employed people were managers, against 12.3% across Western Australia and 13.7% across Australia.
Source: ABS 2021 Census QuickStats: Western Australia - Wheat Belt
Agriculture Victoria reports gross value of $22.2 billion in 2023 to 2024, led by dairy in Gippsland, beef and sheep in Barwon South West and Hume, and broadacre cropping in Loddon Mallee and Grampians.
There is no national licence. Employers look at experience in the type of farm, references and sometimes a certificate or diploma in agriculture, livestock or horticulture, plus any tickets the site needs.
No. The award has farm and livestock hand levels 1 to 8 and no classification called farm manager, so a manager's pay is often set by contract. Ask which instrument applies and check Fair Work for the latest rates.
Sometimes. If an employer offers housing, get the terms in writing, including any deduction, because an employer can deduct accommodation only in limited cases, such as your written agreement where it is principally for your benefit.
A supervisor usually leads a crew and may receive a leading hand allowance, while a manager runs the enterprise or a major part of it and is often paid by contract. Advertisements use the terms loosely, so read the duties.
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Roles that match show in the live roles section above when an employer has briefed us. When none is open you can register and upload a CV so a recruiter can find you when a brief arrives. Listings are not job offers.
