Guides
Employer guides to Australian workplace law.
What the Fair Work Act, the National Employment Standards and the ATO require of employers, with the figures, deadlines and section numbers that matter. Each guide lists its sources.
Pay and records
GuidePaying employees in cash: what’s legalCash wages are legal in Australia, but tax withholding, STP reporting, Payday Super, pay slips and 7-year records still apply.Read guide GuideEmployer record-keeping obligationsWhat employee records Australian employers must keep, for how long (7 years under the Fair Work Act), pay slip rules, ATO retention and the penalties for gaps.Read guide GuidePayroll tax for employers: thresholds and ratesPayroll tax thresholds and rates for every state and territory in 2026–27, what counts as wages, grouping, contractors, registration and returns.Read guide GuidePayday Super: running payroll under the new rulesPayday Super from 1 July 2026: the 7 business day deadline, qualifying earnings, exceptions, the new super guarantee charge and the payroll changes employers need.Read guide GuideA 30-minute HR compliance auditSix 5-minute checks for Australian employers: award rates, employment types, pay slips and records, Payday Super, leave balances, and contracts and safety basics.Read guide
Leave and family
GuidePaid Parental Leave: employer payroll stepsHow employers pass government Parental Leave Pay through payroll: 26 weeks at $1,004.70 a week from 1 July 2026, funding, tax, STP, super and records.Read guide GuideWhen an employee tells you they’re pregnantEmployer checklist for pregnancy at work: discrimination rules, safe jobs, parental leave eligibility and notice, keeping in touch days and the return to work guarantee.Read guide GuideManaging frequent sick leave lawfullyWhat employers can and can’t do about frequent sick leave: the 10-day NES entitlement, evidence you can ask for, the 3-month absence protection and lawful next steps.Read guide GuideCalculating annual and personal leave accrualHow annual leave and personal/carer’s leave accrue under the NES, with worked hourly rates for full-time, part-time and shiftworkers, service, loading and cashing out.Read guide
Awards and arrangements
GuideModern award compliance for employersHow to work out award coverage and classification, apply the 2026 minimum wage increase, penalty rates and casual loading, meet the NES and avoid underpayment.Read guide GuideEnterprise agreement vs awardHow an enterprise agreement differs from a modern award: the bargaining and approval steps, the better off overall test, the 4-year nominal expiry and how agreements end.Read guide GuideContractor or employee: the 2024 testHow the Fair Work Act’s whole of relationship test (s 15AA, from 26 August 2024) decides contractor or employee, plus the separate tax, super and payroll tax rules.Read guide GuideClerks Award working from home clause (5A)Clause 5A of the Clerks Award, in operation from 26 October 2026: who it covers, what can be agreed, the written agreement and how it sits beside s 65 requests.Read guide GuideVictoria’s work from home bill: status and what it proposedAs at 5 November 2026 Victoria has no legal right to work from home: the Equal Opportunity Amendment (Work from Home) Bill 2026 lapsed on 3 November 2026.Read guide
Hiring and onboarding
GuideHiring your first employee: checklist and costsWhat to set up before your first employee starts in Australia: award, contract, information statements, TFN, super, STP, workers compensation, records and costs.Read guide GuideFair Work rules for small business employersWhat changes for employers with fewer than 15 employees: how to count, unfair dismissal, the Fair Dismissal Code, redundancy pay, casual conversion and penalties.Read guide
Performance and exits
GuideManaging underperformance fairlyA fair underperformance process for Australian employers: expectations, meetings, improvement plans, warnings and the unfair dismissal tests in s 387.Read guide GuideGarden leave and payment in lieu of noticeGarden leave or payment in lieu of notice? How each works under the Fair Work Act, notice periods, leave accrual, tax, super and the cost to the business.Read guide GuideEnding employment: lawful termination stepsSteps to end employment lawfully in Australia: valid reason, fair process, written notice, final pay, redundancy pay, separation certificates and tax.Read guide GuideSmall Business Fair Dismissal CodeHow the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code works: who it covers, summary dismissal, warnings, the checklist, what the Fair Work Commission checks and the 21-day limit.Read guide
Workplace safety
GuideWHS requirements for small businessWhat a small business must do under Australian WHS law: the primary duty, managing risks, consultation, first aid, facilities, emergency plans and workers comp.Read guide GuideNotifiable incidents: when to call the WHS regulatorWhat counts as a notifiable incident under Australian WHS and OHS law, how fast to notify, site preservation, 5-year records and each regulator’s notification line.Read guide GuidePsychosocial hazards and how to run a risk assessmentWhat psychosocial hazards are, the duty in WHS regulations 55A–55D, how each state applies it, and a four-step risk assessment with worker consultation.Read guide GuideNSW psychosocial safety: 2025–26 changes and inspectionsWhat changed in NSW psychosocial safety law in 2025–26, the SafeWork NSW inspection operation from 9 October 2026, and what inspectors expect to see.Read guide GuideWorkplace bullying: employer obligationsThe legal definition of workplace bullying, Fair Work Commission stop-bullying orders, reasonable management action, and the WHS duty to prevent bullying.Read guide GuideThe positive duty to prevent workplace sexual harassmentThe employer positive duty in Sex Discrimination Act s 47C, the Commission’s enforcement powers and seven standards, the Fair Work Act ban and WHS duties.Read guide GuideOfficer due diligence under WHS lawWho is an officer under Australian WHS law, the six due diligence steps in section 27(5), what evidence of each looks like, and how Victoria and WA differ.Read guide GuideNSW WHS codes of practice and the s 26A dutySince 1 July 2026, s 26A of the NSW WHS Act requires businesses to follow approved codes of practice or meet an equivalent or higher standard, and how to show you comply.Read guide
Privacy and data
GuideEmployee records: privacy and securityHow the Privacy Act’s employee records and small business exemptions work, what they don’t cover, and how to secure HR and payroll data and respond to a breach.Read guide GuideAutomated decisions: what your privacy policy must discloseFrom 10 December 2026, APP 1.7–1.9 require privacy policies to disclose decisions made or assisted by computer programs, including hiring tools that rank applicants.Read guide GuideUsing AI assistants with HR dataThe privacy, surveillance, discrimination and consultation rules that apply when HR staff use AI assistants with employee information, and the policy rules to set.Read guide GuideEssential Eight for HR and payroll dataHow to apply the ASD’s Essential Eight and its maturity levels to the systems holding HR and payroll data, and the controls that stop bank detail change fraud.Read guide
Checked against the source. Every figure, date and section number in these guides is checked against the legislation or the regulator’s own guidance, and each guide shows the date it was last checked. For the numbers, use the free calculators. Guides are general information about the national workplace relations system, not legal advice.