Employer Guides — Pay, Hiring & Labour Hire
Plain-English guides for Australian employers: pay and awards, leave, hiring and onboarding, ending employment, WHS and labour hire. Search or filter by topic.
Pay, awards & payroll · Complete guide
Minimum Wage Australia: Rates & Rules for 2026
The national minimum wage is $26.44 per hour, or $1,004.90 for a 38-hour week, from the first full pay period starting on or after…
Labour hire & staffing · Complete guide
How Recruitment Agencies Work: A Guide for Employers
How recruitment agencies work comes down to one idea: an agency finds, screens and presents candidates, then either hands them to you as permanent…
Labour hire & staffing · Complete guide
Labour Hire: What It Is, How It Works & What It Costs
Labour hire is an arrangement where a labour hire agency employs workers and supplies them to a host business, which directs the daily work…
Pay, awards & payroll · Complete guide
Salary Packaging: How It Works in Australia
What is salary packaging? It is an agreement with your employer to swap part of your pre-tax pay for benefits, most often extra super,…
HR management & WHS · Complete guide
Psychosocial Hazards at Work: Employer Duties & Examples
Psychosocial hazards are parts of the way work is designed, managed and experienced that can harm a worker's psychological or physical health. In NSW,…
Ending employment & discipline · Complete guide
Redundancy Calculator: How Redundancy Pay Is Worked Out
A redundancy calculator works out your National Employment Standards (NES) redundancy pay by matching your completed years of service to the Fair Work…
HR management & WHS · Complete guide
HR Compliance Checklist for Australian Employers
HR compliance means meeting your legal duties as an employer: paying the correct award rate, keeping records, giving entitlements, running a safe…
Employment types · Complete guide
Casual vs Part-Time: Key Differences Explained
The difference between casual and part time comes down to commitment and leave. A part-time employee has ongoing work with regular hours and pro…
Ending employment & discipline · Complete guide
Misconduct in the Workplace: Examples & Process
Misconduct in the workplace is behaviour by an employee that breaches their duties or the standards the employer can fairly expect, and serious…
Pay, awards & payroll · Complete guide
Payroll for Small Business: Obligations & Setup
Payroll for small business means paying employees the correct wages and super on time, issuing payslips and reporting to the ATO. From 1 July…
Leave & workplace rights · Complete guide
Annual Leave in Australia: How to Calculate It
To calculate annual leave, start with 4 weeks of paid leave a year for a full-time employee, built up progressively as they work ordinary…
Hiring & onboarding · Complete guide
How to Hire Employees: Step-by-Step Guide
How to hire employees in Australia comes down to six steps: plan the role, write the job description, source and screen candidates, check them…
Pay, awards & payroll · Complete guide
Modern Awards Explained: How Fair Work Awards Work
Fair work awards are industry or occupation rulebooks that set the minimum pay and conditions for employees they cover, on top of the National…
Ending employment & discipline
Resignation Letter: Free Template & Examples
A resignation letter is a short written notice that tells your employer you are ending your job. It needs your name, the date, your…
Leave & workplace rights
Long Service Leave NSW: Entitlements & Rules (2026)
Long service leave nsw is 2 months (8.67 weeks) of paid leave after 10 years of continuous service, then a further 1 month (4.33…
Hiring & onboarding
Police Check NSW: Cost, How to Apply & Employer Rules
A police check nsw is applied for online through the NSW Police Force Community Portal, costs $58.60 for a name and date of birth…
Hiring & onboarding
Interview Questions: Examples & What to Ask
Interview questions are the set of job-related questions you ask every candidate so you can compare them fairly. A good bank has four parts:…
Leave & workplace rights
Paid Parental Leave: Entitlements & Rules (2026)
Government-funded paid parental leave increases from 24 to 26 weeks from 1 July 2026, and it is paid at the national minimum wage rate.…
Ending employment & discipline
Unfair Dismissal: Rules, Time Limits & Thresholds
An unfair dismissal claim must be lodged with the Fair Work Commission within 21 days of the dismissal taking effect. Whether it succeeds depends…
Leave & workplace rights
Annual Leave Loading: How It Works & Who Gets It
Leave loading is an extra payment on top of base pay while an employee is on annual leave, and where an award or agreement…
Pay, awards & payroll
Fast Food Industry Award: Pay Rates & Key Rules (2026)
The fast food industry award sets the minimum pay and conditions for most fast food employees in the national system, and modern award minimum…
Pay, awards & payroll
Super Guarantee: 12% Rate & Payday Super Rules
The super guarantee is 12% of ordinary time earnings for 2026-27, unchanged from 1 July 2025. What it applies to depends on how a…
Pay, awards & payroll
Enterprise Agreements: How They Work & Voting Rules
An enterprise agreement is a written agreement between an employer and its employees that sets pay and conditions for a workplace. It must be…
Hiring & onboarding
White Card NSW: Who Needs One & How to Get It
A white card nsw is the general construction induction card you need to do construction work in NSW, from labourers and tradespeople to supervisors.…
Pay, awards & payroll
Single Touch Payroll: What Employers Must Report
Single touch payroll is the way employers report wages, tax and super to the ATO, and the information goes through on or before each…
HR management & WHS
Workers Compensation NSW: A Guide for Australian Employers
Workers compensation NSW is the insurance system that pays for medical treatment, lost income and recovery support when a worker is injured or becomes…
Employment types
Contractor vs Employee: Key Differences Explained
In the contractor vs employee question, the real working relationship decides the answer, not the label in the contract and not an ABN. An…
Labour hire & staffing
Labour Hire Licence: Which States Require One
A labour hire licence is required in Victoria, Queensland, South Australia and the ACT, but not in NSW, which has no labour hire licensing…
Pay, awards & payroll
Public Holiday Pay Rates: Who Gets Paid What
Employees are entitled to be absent and paid for the ordinary hours they would have worked on a public holiday, but public holiday rates…
HR management & WHS
Workplace Bullying: A Guide for Australian Employers
Workplace bullying is repeated, unreasonable behaviour directed at a worker or group of workers that creates a risk to health and safety. Employers…
Hiring & onboarding
Probation Period: How It Works in Australia
A probation period is a trial stretch at the start of a job, agreed in the contract, when the employer and the employee check…
Labour hire & staffing
Temp Agency: How Temporary Staffing Works
A temp agency employs workers and places them with host businesses for short or flexible assignments, and the agency pays the wages, super and…
Pay, awards & payroll
Penalty Rates: How They Work in Australia
From the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2026 the national minimum wage is $26.44 per hour, but penalty rates…
Pay, awards & payroll
Payroll Tax NSW: Rate, Threshold & How It Works
Payroll tax nsw for 2026-27 is 5.45% of NSW taxable wages above the $1,200,000 annual threshold. Whether you owe it depends on your total…
Pay, awards & payroll
What Does YTD Mean on a Payslip? Payslip Terms Explained
What does ytd mean on payslip? YTD stands for year to date, and it is the running total of your pay, tax and super…
Hiring & onboarding
Employment Contract Template: Free Template & Examples
An employment contract template records the terms of a job so both sides know the pay, hours, duties and notice that apply. It should…
Labour hire & staffing
Aged Care & Healthcare Recruitment Agencies: How They Work
An aged care recruitment agency finds, screens and places care staff on a permanent, temporary or casual basis, and a healthcare recruitment agency…
Employment types
Part-Time Minimum Hours: What the Rules Say
Part time minimum hours are not set by the National Employment Standards, because the NES does not set a minimum number of weekly hours…
Hiring & onboarding
What Is Workforce Planning? Steps & Examples
What is workforce planning? It is the process of working out how many people you need, with which skills, and when, then deciding whether…
HR management & WHS
HR Business Partner: Role, Duties & When You Need One
An HR business partner is a senior HR professional who works alongside business leaders to turn workforce needs into practical people decisions. They…
HR management & WHS
HR Support for Small Business: Options & Costs
HR support for small business means getting expert help with pay, contracts, safety and people problems without hiring a full HR team. Most owners…
Labour hire & staffing
Outsourced Recruitment (RPO): How It Works
Outsourced recruitment means a specialist provider runs some or all of your hiring for you, and recruitment process outsourcing (RPO) is the most…
Hiring & onboarding
Onboarding Checklist: Free Checklist & Steps
An onboarding checklist gets a new starter paid correctly, safe on site and clear about the job from the first shift. It must cover…
Hiring & onboarding
Job Description Template: Free Template & Examples
A job description template is a written outline of a role that sets out the purpose, duties, requirements and conditions before you advertise or…
Pay, awards & payroll
Retail Award: Pay Rates & Key Rules (2026)
The retail award sets minimum pay and conditions for most retail employees in the national system, and modern award minimum rates rose 4.75% from…
Ending employment & discipline
How Many Written Warnings Before Dismissal?
There is no set number for how many written warnings before dismissal in Australian law, because fairness depends on the seriousness of the conduct,…
Hiring & onboarding
Reference Check Questions: Examples & What to Ask
Reference check questions confirm what a candidate told you about their role, results, reliability and conduct, using a referee who has worked with…
Leave & workplace rights
Bereavement Leave: Entitlements & Rules (2026)
Your bereavement leave entitlement under the National Employment Standards is 2 days of compassionate leave for each occasion, and it is paid for…
Labour hire & staffing
Construction Labour Hire: How It Works & What to Check
Construction labour hire means a provider employs workers and places them with your site for a set period, while you direct the daily work.…
Pay, awards & payroll
Mining Award: Pay Rates & Key Rules (2026)
The mining award sets minimum pay and conditions for covered mining employees, and modern award minimum rates rose 4.75% from the first full pay…
Ending employment & discipline
Workplace Investigations in Australia: Process & Steps
Workplace investigations Australia employers run must be fair, evidence-based and free of bias, because a weak process can undo an otherwise valid…
HR management & WHS
Employee Rewards Programs: Ideas & How to Set One Up
Employee rewards programs are structured ways to thank staff for effort, results or loyalty, using pay-related items such as bonuses and non-cash items…
Leave & workplace rights
Long Service Leave Victoria: Entitlements & Rules (2026)
Under the long service leave act Victoria (the Long Service Leave Act 2018), leave accrues at 1/60th of a week for each week of…
Pay, awards & payroll
Not-for-Profit Salary Packaging: How It Works
For 2026-27 the concessional (before-tax) super contributions cap is $32,500, and it includes salary-sacrificed super plus your employer's super…
Leave & workplace rights
Sick Leave in Australia: How Much You Accrue
If you want to know how much sick leave accrued per week, the National Employment Standards give a full-time employee 10 days of paid…
Ending employment & discipline
Severance Pay in Australia: How Redundancy Pay Works
Severance pay in Australia is the National Employment Standards redundancy payment, and it runs from 4 weeks of pay after 1 year of service…
Ending employment & discipline
Notice Period for Redundancy: NES Rules Explained
The notice period for redundancy under the National Employment Standards runs from 1 week to 4 weeks, depending on how long you have worked…
Ending employment & discipline
Employee Rights in Disciplinary Meetings (Australia)
Employee rights in disciplinary meetings Australia come down to a fair process: you should be told what the concern is, be given a real…
Pay, awards & payroll
Cleaning Award: Pay Rates & Key Rules (2026)
The cleaner award rate is the minimum hourly pay for cleaning work set by the Cleaning Services Award, and modern award minimum rates rose…
Pay, awards & payroll
How to Calculate Overtime: Step-by-Step Guide
To work out how to calculate overtime, take your award or agreement hourly rate, multiply it by the overtime rate that document sets, then…
Employment types
Salary vs Wages: Key Differences Explained
The difference between salary and wages is how you are paid: a salary is a fixed yearly amount for the job, while wages are…
Leave & workplace rights
What Is the Right to Disconnect?
What is the right to disconnect? It is your right as an employee to refuse to monitor, read or respond to contact from your…
Pay, awards & payroll
Fair Work Breaks: Meal & Rest Break Rules
Fair work breaks are set by your modern award, enterprise agreement or employment contract, because the National Employment Standards do not give a…
Labour hire & staffing
How Much Do Recruitment Agencies Charge?
How much do recruitment agencies charge depends on the service: permanent placement is usually a percentage of the candidate's first-year salary, while…
HR management & WHS
Why Is Employee Engagement Important?
Why is employee engagement important? Engaged staff turn up, stay safe, work well with others and tend to stay longer, which cuts turnover, errors…
Pay, awards & payroll
National Employment Standards: Minimum Entitlements Explained
The National Employment Standards are the minimum entitlements in the Fair Work Act 2009 that apply to every employee in the national system, including…
Leave & workplace rights
Flexible Work Arrangements: Fair Work Rules
Under Fair Work flexible work arrangements, an employee with at least 12 months of continuous service (and some casuals) can ask in writing to…
Employment types
Casual Loading: What It Is & How It Works
Whats casual loading? It is an extra 25% added to a casual employee's base hourly rate under most awards, and it applies to award-free…
Pay, awards & payroll
Restaurant Industry Award: Pay Rates & Key Rules (2026)
The restaurant industry award sets minimum pay and conditions for most restaurant and catering staff in the national system, and modern award minimum…
Ending employment & discipline · Glossary
What Is Insubordination? Meaning & Examples
Insubordination means refusing to follow a lawful and reasonable instruction from a manager, or showing open disrespect to them. Under the Fair Work…
Ending employment & discipline · Glossary
What Is Retrenchment? Meaning & Examples
Retrenchment means your employer ends your job because the business no longer needs it, not because of anything you did. In Australia the law…
Employment types · Glossary
What Is Remuneration? Meaning & Examples
What is remuneration? It is the total value of everything an employee receives for their work, including wages or salary, allowances, super and other…
Pay, awards & payroll · Glossary
What Is Backpay? Meaning & Examples
Backpay is money an employer owes a worker for wages or entitlements that were underpaid, unpaid or paid late. Under the Fair Work Act…
Ending employment & discipline · Glossary
Redundancy Pay in WA: How It Works
A redundancy payment WA workers receive is money your employer owes when your job is no longer needed and you did not do anything…
Labour hire & staffing · Glossary
FIFO Meaning: What FIFO Jobs Involve
FIFO stands for fly-in fly-out, and the fifo jobs meaning is simple: you fly to a remote work site, work a block of rostered…
Labour hire & staffing · Glossary
What Is Seasonal Work? Meaning & Examples
What is seasonal work? It is work that is only available at certain times of the year, such as harvest, summer tourism or the…
Pay, awards & payroll · Glossary
Work Allowances: Leading Hand & Other Award Allowances
A leading hand allowance is an extra payment for an employee who directs or supervises other workers on top of doing their own tasks.…
Pay, awards & payroll · Glossary
Time in Lieu (TOIL): Meaning & Rules
Time in lieu is paid time off that an employee takes instead of being paid for extra hours they have worked. In Australian workplaces…
Employment types · Glossary
Blue Collar vs White Collar: Key Differences Explained
Blue collar vs white collar is a plain way of splitting work into hands-on, site-based jobs and office-based, desk-based jobs. In Australian workplace…
Hiring & onboarding · Glossary
Cost of Employee Turnover: How to Calculate It
The cost of employee turnover is the total amount a business spends when a worker leaves and has to be replaced, including final pay,…
HR management & WHS · Glossary
Employee Assistance Program (EAP): Meaning & Uses
An employee assist program is a confidential counselling and support service that an employer pays for so staff can get help with personal or…
Labour hire & staffing · Glossary
What Is Employer of Record? Meaning & Examples
An employer of record is a third party that legally employs a worker on behalf of another business, which directs the daily work. In…
Ending employment & discipline · Glossary
Transfer of Business Under the Fair Work Act
The transfer of business Fair Work Act rules apply when employees move from one employer to another because work, and often assets, pass between…
Ending employment & discipline · Glossary
What Is Workplace Mediation? Meaning & Examples
Workplace mediation is a confidential, voluntary meeting where a neutral third person helps two people or groups reach their own agreement about a…
Pay, awards & payroll · Glossary
Electrical Power Industry Award: Pay Rates & Key Rules (2026)
The electrical power industry award is the modern award that sets minimum pay and conditions for employees who work in the electrical power industry,…
Ending employment & discipline · Glossary
Performance Improvement Plan (PIP): Meaning & Steps
PIP work is the process of setting out, in writing, where an employee's performance falls short and what support and time they get to…
Ending employment & discipline · Glossary
Relieving Letter: Free Template & Examples
A relieving letter is a document from your employer confirming that you have left the job and have been released from your duties. Australian…
HR management & WHS · Glossary
Fitness for Work Policy: Meaning & What to Include
A fitness for work policy is a written workplace rule that says everyone must be able to do their job safely, free from impairment…
HR management & WHS · Glossary
HR Manager Salary in Sydney: What Affects Pay
HR manager salary Sydney figures vary widely because most HR managers are paid by individual contract rather than an award, so the rate depends…
HR management & WHS · Glossary
Professionalism in the Workplace: Meaning & Examples
Professionalism in the workplace means behaving reliably, respectfully and safely, and doing your job to the standard the role requires. Australian law…
Ending employment & discipline · Glossary
Suspended from Work: Rules & Your Rights
Being suspended from work means an employer stops you from performing your duties for a set period, usually while a serious issue is investigated.…
HR management & WHS · Glossary
Absenteeism in the Workplace: Causes & Costs
Absenteeism in the workplace is a pattern of unplanned or unexcused absence from work, beyond what leave entitlements and agreed arrangements cover.…
Ending employment & discipline · Glossary
Employment Settlement Agreement: Meaning & Key Terms
An employment settlement agreement is a written deal that ends a workplace dispute or an employment relationship, usually with a payment in exchange…
HR management & WHS · Glossary
Generations in the Workplace: Meaning & Examples
Generations in the workplace describes the mix of age groups, from baby boomers to Gen Z, who work side by side and who may…
Pay, awards & payroll · Glossary
Maximum Working Hours per Week in Australia
The maximum hours of work per week for a full-time employee in Australia is 38 ordinary hours, plus reasonable additional hours. Under the National…
Leave & workplace rights · Glossary
Is Purchased Leave Worth It?
Is purchased leave worth it? It can be, if you value extra time off more than the pay you give up, but it is…
Employment types · Glossary
What Is a Secondment? Meaning & Examples
A secondment is a temporary move of an employee to another team, business or organisation, while they stay employed by their original employer. It…
Employment types · Glossary
What Is OTE? On-Target Earnings Explained
What is OTE? OTE means ordinary time earnings, the pay an employee earns for their ordinary hours of work, and it is the base…
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