☑️ The Basics

Currency: Australian dollar (Rate)

Public Holidays: Up to 7 national holidays (and additional state and territory public holidays; see here)

Employer Taxes: 9.5% of gross salary

Official Language: English

Payroll frequency: weekly, bi-monthly, monthly

Three things to know about employing in Australia

1. Employees in Australia have a superannuation fund — an employment-funded pension that they can access after retiring from work. Employers are mandated to contribute to the fund for their employees at the rate of 10%. Additional employee contributions are allowed, but not compulsory. Agreed salaries typically exclude the superannuation contributions.
2. Employees dismissed in the first six months of employment (or 12 months of employment in small businesses) cannot make a claim of “unfair dismissal” to the Fair Work Commission.
3. If a non-compete agreement is included in an employee’s original offer of employment, it can be seen as part of the exchange for the employer’s promise to employ the individual. If it is introduced afterwards, it can be compensated by a bonus or salary increase.

Employment in Australia

Notice Period

Notice period is determined by the length of employment:

• <1 year: One week
• 1-3 years: Two weeks
• 3-5 years: Three weeks

• 5 years: Four weeks

If the employee is over 45 and has been employed for at least two years, they are entitled to an additional week of notice.

Employees should check their award or employment contract for the notice period set out for resignations.

Termination & Severance

Employers can offer termination pay in lieu of a notice of termination. This is paid at the employee's full pay rate as if they had worked the minimum notice period.

Employees made redundant are entitled to redundancy pay, which is paid at their base — not full — salary level (this excludes incentive-based payment and bonuses, or overtime and penalty rates).

Probationary period

Employers are not obligated to offer a reason for terminating employees:

• who have been working for less than six months (for an organisation larger than 15 employees)
• who have been working for less than a year (for an organisation that have fewer than 15 employees)

Minimum Wage

19.49 AUD per hour

IP protection and non-compete agreements

The enforcement of non-compete clauses can depend on whether consideration for such an agreement was given to an employee.

If the agreement was part of the employee’s original offer of employment, it can be seen as part of the exchange for the employer’s promise to employ the individual. If it was introduced afterwards, it can be linked to a bonus or salary increase.