Increase to national minimum wage

The Fair Work Commission has increased the national minimum wage by 5.2% or roughly $1 an hour to $21.38 an hour.

The Hospitality and Tourism sector, along with other hard hit industries like Aviation, has been given a temporary reprieve with the wage increase to apply from 1 October 2022.

The wage increase however has been split, meaning millions of workers on a higher Award rate will only see an increase of 4.6 per cent.

This increase comes on top of an increase to the Superannuation Guarantee (SG) rate as well as abolishing the minimum monthly wage threshold for SG contributions to apply.

Employers need to be ready

Employers should review employee remuneration and ensure wages do not fall below the minimum wage and consider the total hours worked and overtime hours to mitigate any risks to modern slavery laws. It is important that employers update their payroll software accordingly.

Employers who are subject to Awards that provide for annual leave loading of 17.5% to employees will also need to adjust the minimum wage rate where the loading is based on the minimum wage rather than the employee’s base salary.

For the latest superannuation impacts that all businesses need to know before 1 July 2022, download our webinar Superannuation changes 2022/23 or view our recent article Don’t get caught out by upcoming superannuation changes.

How SW can assist

SW through our joint venture with OnTap Hospitality can assist you with all of your bookkeeping, payroll and management reporting needs.

Do not hesitate to contact our Hospitality and Tourism sector specialists Tim Stillwell, Andy Lau and Jeremy Wicht or our payroll expert Sharon Burke.