Your rights at work in Australia

• From 1 July 2026, the National Minimum Wage is $26.44 per hour or $1,004.90 per week (before tax). It applies to employees not covered by an award or agreement.
• If an award or registered agreement covers you, its minimum rates apply, including penalty rates and allowances, and these may be higher. Use the Fair Work Ombudsman's Pay and Conditions Tool or its pay guides to check the right rate.
• Minimum wages are reviewed every year, and most changes start from the first full pay period on or after 1 July.
• Job advertisements cannot offer pay rates that breach the Fair Work Act or an award or agreement.

The NES are the minimum entitlements for all employees in the national system. They cover:

• maximum weekly hours: 38 hours a week, plus reasonable additional hours;
• requests for flexible working arrangements;
• casual employment rules;
• parental leave;
• annual leave: 4 weeks a year for full-time and part-time employees, based on ordinary hours;
• personal/carer's leave, compassionate leave and family and domestic violence leave: full-time employees get 10 days of paid sick and carer's leave a year (pro rata for part-time);
• community service leave and long service leave;
• public holidays;
• superannuation contributions;
• notice of termination and redundancy pay;
• the Fair Work Information Statement, which your employer must give you when you start (and the Casual Employment Information Statement for casual employees).

Casual employees only receive some NES entitlements, such as unpaid carer's and compassionate leave and paid family and domestic violence leave, but not paid annual or sick leave. Instead they are usually entitled to a casual loading or a specific casual pay rate under their award, agreement or contract (the Fair Work Ombudsman's examples use a 25% loading).

Your employer must give you a payslip within 1 working day of pay day, including when you are on leave. It shows your pay, deductions and the super paid for you. Most employees also receive the super guarantee (12% of qualifying earnings in 2026–27) on top of their wages; see Superannuation in Australia.

The Fair Work Ombudsman is clear that migrant workers have the same rights and protections as other employees, including pay, leave, protection from discrimination, notice of termination and final pay. These rights continue even if you have breached a visa condition, have no work rights or have no right to be in Australia.

• Contacting the Fair Work Ombudsman will not cancel your visa. Your employer cannot cancel your visa either; only the Department of Home Affairs can grant, refuse or cancel visas.
• Government pilot programmes (the Strengthening Reporting Protections Pilot and the Workplace Justice Visa Pilot) are designed to help visa workers report exploitation without fear of losing their visa.
• It is illegal for anyone to ask you for money or another benefit in return for visa sponsorship, and cashback schemes (where an employer makes you pay back part of your pay or pay for a job) are also illegal.
• Know your visa's rules on the type of work and hours you may do, and check them in VEVO.