Wages

What are ​​​​wa​​ges

You must be paid for the work that you do. The payment you get is called a wage or salary. Your employer can pay you in cash, by cheque or deposit the money into your bank account.

Your employer must give you a payslip within one working day of your payday.  A payslip shows:

• how much you were paid,
• how much superannuation was paid and
• any money taken out of your pay, such as tax. 

Even if you are paid in cash, your employer must give you a payslip. If you don't get a payslip, you can ask for one. The payslip helps you check that your employer is following the law by paying you correctly, for example paying your superannuation.

If you are not paid or you haven't been paid the right amount, there are steps you can take to try and recover what you are owed. Intentional underpayment of wages or entitlements can be a criminal offence.

For more information, see What if my entitlements are not paid?

How much you should be paid

Your pay will depend on:

• the minimum wage,
• your award (if you have one),
• your enterprise agreement (if you have one) and
• your employment contract

Some employees may be entitled to overtime, allowances, commissions and bonuses as well as their ordinary wage.

Minimum wage

Most employees must be paid at least the national minimum wage. Some employees are entitled to a higher minimum wage, set out in their award or enterprise agreement. 

To find out the minimum wage for your type of work, see Minimum wages on the Fair Work Commission website. 

If you are not sure if you should be paid the minimum wage, you should get legal advice.

Your award

An award is a legal document that sets the minimum pay and conditions for some jobs and industries. It may say the minimum hourly rate you should be paid depending on how long you have worked in your role.

Not all employees are covered by an award. To find out what award might apply to you, see the Fair Work Ombudsman website.

Enterprise agreement

An enterprise agreement is an agreement between an employer and employees. It sets out the terms and conditions of employment, and what the minimum wage for your position is. The Fair Work Commission must approve the agreement.

If your workplace has an enterprise agreement, the award for your type of job doesn't apply. But the pay rate in the enterprise agreement can't be lower than the award rate. 

You can search for an enterprise agreement on the Fair Work Commission website.

Your employment contract

You and your employer can agree that you be paid more than the amount in your award or enterprise agreement.

Your contract cannot remove rights in your award or enterprise agreement. 

Your employment contract may be written. If you don't have a written contract, the terms of the contract may be based on:

• what was said when you were employed
• what has happened while you have been employed
• what is the normal practice in your industry
• what is in the award
• what the national employment standards are.

If you are not sure what the terms of your contract of employment are, you should get legal advice.

Same pay for labour hire workers

 If you work through a labour hire agency, you may get the same pay as workers employed directly by the business where you work (the host employer).

You must be doing the same type of work in the same workplace.

The same rate of pay applies after the Fair Work Commission makes a regulated labour hire arrangement order. Workers, unions, or the host employer can apply for this order. If you are unsure whether these rules apply to you, contact the Fair Work Ombudsman or get legal advice.

For more information, see Protected pay rates for labour hire employees on the Fair Work Ombudsman website.

Overtime, penalty rates and allowances

Overtime

Under the National Employment Standards (NES), your normal working hours can't be more than 38 hours per week for a full-time employee.

If you work extra hours, you may get overtime pay.

Overtime pay is usually higher rate than your normal hourly rate. The amount depends on:

• your award or enterprise agreement
• the day that you do the work (generally overtime is paid on Saturdays and Sundays)
• how many extra hours you worked.

Your employer can ask you to work extra hours but the request must be reasonable. If your employer is forcing you to work unreasonable extra hours, you should get legal advice.

Penalty rates

If you work late nights, early mornings, weekends or on public holidays, your employer may need to pay you a higher rate of pay. These higher rates are called penalty rates, and they can be different depending on your job or industry you work in. How much you should be paid for working during these times will depend on your award, enterprise agreement or contract of employment.

If you are only covered by the National Employment Standards you are not entitled to penalty rates.

Allowances

Some employees may be entitled to extra payments, for things like:

• working in extreme temperatures
• wearing a uniform
• meals
• wear and tear of their own tools
• working in dirty or dangerous conditions.

These types of payments are called allowances. The allowances that you should get are set out in your employment contract, award or enterprise agreement. 

If you are entitled to overtime or any allowances, these will usually be paid along with your pay. Overtime and allowances are usually written separately on your payslip so you can easily check how much you were paid for these.

If you are fired from your job, you should still be paid any allowances you are entitled to and any overtime that you worked until your last day of employment. You should get these payments when you leave your job or on the next scheduled payday.

If you have been underpaid or not paid at all, there are steps you can take to try and get the money that you are owed. For more information, see What if my entitlements are not paid?

 If you are not sure if you are owed overtime, penalty rates or any allowances, you should get legal advice.

Commissions and bonuses

Commissions

If you are paid a commission, you usually get money based on what you sell. This is common in car sales and real estate sales.

A commission might be your whole pay. Or it might be extra money on top of your usual pay.
 

Your employment contract, enterprise agreement or award should say if you must be paid commission. If you are not sure, get legal advice.

Not all employees can be paid only by commission.

If you are paid only by commission, minimum rules may still apply to your job. This may include a minimum wage.

Get legal advice to find out what rules apply to you.

Bonuses

A bonus is extra money your employer pays you if you meet a target or do your job to a set standard.

For example, you may get a bonus if you sell a set number of products in one year. You may also get a bonus if your employer makes a set profit for the year.

Your employment contract, enterprise agreement or award should say if you can get a bonus.

If you are not sure, get legal advice.

If you are paid by commission, it is usually at the same time as your wages, for example weekly, fortnightly or monthly.

Your employer may pay a bonus at the end of a set time, for example at the end of the financial year.

If you are fired from your job, you may still have a right to any bonus or commission your employer owes you. Your employer may pay this with your final pay or on the next payday.

In some cases, your employer may pay you later. For example, they may need time to get sales figures or check if you met your targets. They use this to work out how much to pay you.

For some employees, the employer chooses whether to pay a bonus. This means you may not be able to make your employer pay it if they decide not to.

If you have been underpaid or not paid at all, you can take to get the money that you are owed. For more information, see What if my entitlements are not paid?

When should you be paid

If an award or an enterprise agreement covers you, it should say when your wages must be paid. For example, it might say that you must be paid weekly or fortnightly.

If you are not covered by an award or an enterprise agreement, check your employment contract. If your contract doesn't say how often you should be paid, then you must be paid at least monthly.

If you are fired from your job, you must be paid for the hours that you have worked.Your employer should also pay you any money that they owe you when you leave your job on the next payday.

If you have been underpaid or not paid at all, there are steps you can take to try and get the money that you are owed. For more information, see What if my entitlements are not paid?

Deductions

A deduction is when your employer takes money out of your pay.

Examples of deductions include:

• salary sacrificing
• voluntary superannuation contributions
• union fees
• costs of petrol for private use of work car
• costs of personal calls on work phone.

Your employer can only deduct money from your pay if:

• you agree in writing
• it is allowed under a law, court order or Fair Work Commission order
• it is allowed under your award
• it is allowed under your agreement, and you agree to the deduction.

For more information, see Deducting pay on the Fair Work Ombudsman website.

Overpayments

Your employer may have a legal right to get back money they paid you by mistake. But they cannot take it out of your pay unless you agree.

If your employer paid you too much, you should make a written agreement with them. The agreement should say: 

• why your employer paid you too much
• the total amount you need to pay back
• how and when you will pay the money back
• the amount of each repayment.

For more information, see Overpayments on the Fair Work Ombudsman website.

If your employer takes money out of your pay without your agreement, speak to the Fair Work Ombudsman.

If your employer is taking legal action against yto make you pay money back, you should get legal advice.

Last updated: July 2026