HomeNursing payNew South Wales › Nurse Management (NUM / Director of Nursing)

New South Wales Nurse Management (NUM / Director of Nursing) Pay 2025–26

The management track — nursing/midwifery unit managers, nurse managers, and directors of nursing. Pay is driven by the size and complexity of the unit or facility you run, so a bigger hospital means a higher grade.

Pay scale

Base rates, in force from 1 July 2025 — before penalties, allowances and overtime. Entry rate shown for each level/grade (1 July 2025); each has its own increments.

GradeWeeklyHourlyAnnualised
Nursing / Midwifery Unit Manager Level 1$2,679.30$70.51$139,802
Nursing / Midwifery Unit Manager Level 2$2,806.20$73.85$146,424
Nursing / Midwifery Unit Manager Level 3$2,881.70$75.83$150,363
Nurse / Midwife Manager Grade 1$2,671.50$70.30$139,395
Nurse / Midwife Manager Grade 2$2,780.00$73.16$145,056
Nurse / Midwife Manager Grade 3$2,944.30$77.48$153,629
Nurse / Midwife Manager Grade 4$3,107.80$81.78$162,161
Nurse / Midwife Manager Grade 5$3,270.60$86.07$170,655
Nurse / Midwife Manager Grade 6$3,435.10$90.40$179,239
Nurse / Midwife Manager Grade 7$3,707.10$97.56$193,431
Nurse / Midwife Manager Grade 8$3,980.60$104.75$207,702
Nurse / Midwife Manager Grade 9$4,252.70$111.91$221,900

Ways to earn more

  • Nursing/Midwifery Unit Manager Levels 1–3 ($2,679.30–$2,881.70/wk) run a ward or unit — a larger or more complex unit is a higher level.
  • Directors of Nursing, their deputies and assistants, and other nurse managers are paid on the Nurse/Midwife Manager grades 1–9 ($2,671.50–$4,252.70/wk). Your grade is set by the size and complexity (role evaluation) of your facility, so moving to a bigger hospital is a direct pay step.
  • The Continuing Education Allowance ($50.60–$91.40/wk) still applies to nurse managers whose role is more than 50% clinical.

Allowances you can claim

On top of base pay — the allowances most relevant to this role.

Continuing Education Allowance$50.60–$91.40/wk
Still payable on top of base to a nurse manager (Grades 1–3) whose role is more than 50% clinical and who holds a relevant postgraduate qualification.
Uniform allowance$12.48/wk
Paid if the employer doesn't supply your uniform — a $9.53 uniform allowance plus $2.95 for shoes.
Laundry allowance$7.95/wk
If the employer doesn't launder your uniform.
Rural & remote$4.81–$9.44/wk + more
Climatic/Isolation location allowances in western NSW; a Director of Nursing at Tibooburra or Ivanhoe also gets the remote-hospital loading and 7 extra leave days.
Salary packaging~$11,660/yr tax-free
About $9,010 of everyday expenses + ~$2,650 of meal entertainment FBT-free, plus a novated car lease.

Leave, study & the full conditions

Leave and study support (annual, parental, long-service, study leave, the career-break scheme), the overtime, minimum-break and on-call rules, and the complete allowance list apply across all New South Wales nurse classifications — see the full New South Wales nurse pay & conditions guide.

Pay figures are drawn from the Public Health System Nurses' and Midwives' (State) Award 2025 (Serial C10152). Confirm your exact classification, step and allowances against the current instrument and your payslip.