Am I being paid the legal minimum wage?

From 1 July 2026 the national minimum wage is $26.44 an hour, or $1004.90 for a 38-hour week. The Fair Work Commission raised it by 4.75% in the 2026 Annual Wage Review. This is the absolute floor — most jobs are covered by an award with a higher rate.

Casual employees get a 25% casual loading on top, because they do not get paid annual or sick leave. That makes the casual national minimum $33.05 an hour from 1 July 2026. If your award sets a higher base rate, the loading is added to that higher rate instead.

Yes. Minimum wages, penalty rates and superannuation apply to everyone working in Australia regardless of visa or nationality. It is illegal for an employer to pay you less because you are on a temporary visa, and your visa status does not stop you recovering underpaid wages.

Cash itself is legal, but you must still be paid at least the legal minimum, receive a payslip within one working day of being paid, and have 12% super paid into a fund. Cash arrangements with no payslip and no super are the classic setup for underpayment, and they leave you with no record. Ask for payslips in writing.

Penalty rates are higher hourly rates for evenings, weekends and public holidays, set by your modern award. They are not included in this check. In hospitality and retail they are substantial — a Sunday or public holiday shift can pay well above the base rate. Use the Fair Work Ombudsman's Pay Calculator to see the rates for your award and shift times.

Not necessarily. The national minimum wage is only the lowest rate that is legal for anybody. If your job is covered by a modern award — most hospitality, retail, farm, cleaning and care work is — your legal minimum is the award rate, which is usually higher, plus penalty rates. Clearing the national minimum only means you are not in the very worst category.

Keep every payslip, roster and bank record. Work out the gap and raise it with your employer in writing so there is a record. If it is not fixed, contact the Fair Work Ombudsman, which handles wage complaints for free and can act anonymously. Taking action against you for asking about your lawful pay is itself illegal.

Almost always, yes. Super is 12% of your qualifying earnings, so if your wage was too low, the super calculated on it was too low as well. Recovering the wages should also increase the super owed. Check your super separately with our super underpayment calculator.

Only in narrow circumstances. An unpaid trial can last only as long as it takes to demonstrate the skills for the job — often minutes, not a full shift — and you must be directly supervised the whole time. The moment you are doing productive work on your own, such as serving customers or picking fruit, you must be paid. Multi-hour and multi-day unpaid trials are one of the most common ways backpackers and students get exploited. Record the dates and hours and report it to the Fair Work Ombudsman.

Usually yes. Most modern awards set a minimum engagement for casuals, commonly two to four hours depending on the award — the Hospitality Award sets two hours, the General Retail Award three. If you are sent home after 30 minutes, you are generally still owed the full minimum engagement. The number varies by award, so check yours on the Fair Work Pay Calculator.

Yes. Employers must give every employee a payslip within one working day of being paid, on paper or electronically, showing the pay period, gross and net pay, hourly rate, hours worked, and the super contributions and fund. Not providing payslips is a breach in itself and is often a sign of other problems. Ask in writing, and in the meantime keep your own record of dates, hours and amounts — your notes and bank deposits are still useful evidence.