Talent Wiki - Australia
Your quick guide on talent and labor compliance norms in Australia
Capital
Canberra
Currency
Australian Dollar (AUD)
Languages
English (Official)
Payroll Frequency
Monthly/Bi-monthly/Bi-weekly depending on state provisions
GDP per Capita
$65,005
Employer Tax
15.85%
Supplementary Guide for Employment and Expansion in Australia
Talent Wiki - Australia
Subsidiaries
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Work permit
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Payroll
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Benefits & Compensation
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Background checks
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Employment Act
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Sole Proprietorship
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Starting business
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Talent Overview
A highly developed, high-income country, Australia, has the world’s 13th biggest economy. It ranks at the 8th position in human development and 10th in the world per capita income. An abundance of natural resources and robust international trade forms the backbone of the Australian economy.
Major economic hubs:
Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney
Skills in demand:
Digital Transformation Skills, IT industry, Technical Specialists
Local Universities
The top local universities in Australia are as follows:
The University of New South Wales
RANKING
Australia : 1
World : 54
Monash University
RANKING
Australia : 2
World : 56
University of Sydney
RANKING
Australia : 3
World : 65
University of Melbourne
RANKING
Australia : 4
World : 67
University of Queensland
RANKING
Australia : 5
World : 76
Salary Data
Some of the top jobs in Australia and their annual salaries are listed below:
| Job Title | Average Salary (AUD) | Average Salary (USD) |
| Accountant | 5,510 | 3,701.07 |
| Financial Analyst | 10,100 | 6,784.17 |
| Graphic Designer | 4,680 | 3,143.56 |
| Business Analyst | 9,250 | 6,213.22 |
| Customer Service Manager | 10,800 | 7,254.36 |
| Human Resource Officer | 4,510 | 3,029.37 |
Talent Sourcing Tips
Top Local Job Boards:
Seek, Indeed, Jobsearch.gov.au
Number of LinkedIn users:
13,490,000
Top Recruitment Agencies:
Employing in Australia
Employment and workplace relations in Australia are governed by the Fair Work Act of 2009. The Australian labor law framework is derived from the following:
- Constitution
- Federal and state laws
- Statutory agreements
- Employment contracts
Employee Contract:
No statutory requirements are mentioned in the language of the contract.
Probation Period:
The usual probationary period followed in Australia is from one to six months.
Public and Provincial Holidays 2023
| Date | Name | Type |
| 1 Jan | New Years day | National Holiday |
| 2 Jan | New Years holiday | National Holiday |
| 26 Jan | Australia day | National Holiday |
| 7 Apr | Good Friday | National Holiday |
| 8 Apr | Easter Saturday | National Holiday |
| 9 Apr | Easter Sunday | National Holiday |
| 10 Apr | Easter Monday | National Holiday |
| 25 Apr | ANZAC day | National Holiday |
| 12 Jun | Queen’s birthday | National Holiday |
| 2 Oct | Labour day | National Holiday |
| 25 Dec | Christmas day | National Holiday |
| 26 Dec | Boxing day | National Holiday |
Employee Leaves:
| Type of leave | Time Period | Mandatory |
| Annual leave/Earned Leave | 20 days | Yes |
| Sick Leave | 10 days | Yes |
| Maternity Leave | As per employment contract | Yes |
Payroll
Payroll Cycle
Employees are paid bi-weekly (every second week), bi-monthly (15th and 30th), or monthly (28th to 30th).
Minimum Wage
The minimum wage is 21.38 AUD per hour from July 2022.
Overtime Pay
On a general note, for overtime on weekdays, the pay is 1.5 times the regular pay for the first 3 hours of overtime and, after that, twice the regular pay. On Sundays, the payment is twice the rate of regular pay. These vary depending on the industries and states.
Bonus
13th Month Pay:
It is not mandatory to have 13th month pay in Australia.
Employee Benefits:
- Healthcare
- Maternity leave
- Paternity leave
- Stock options (Common for listed companies)
- Superannuation
Taxes
Employer Payroll Tax:
Superannuation Guarantee Percentage – 10.5% (till 2023 July)
Payroll tax rate for individual states:
An entity will be exempt from payroll tax obligations if it has a quantum of wages that falls beneath the identified number.
Employee Payroll Tax:
Employees have to pay the medicare levy at 2%.
Employee Income Tax:
| Taxable income | Tax(AUD) | Tax % on Excess |
| 0 – 18,200 | – | 0% |
| 18,200 – 45,000 | – | 19% |
| 45,000 – 120,000 | 5,092 | 32.5% |
| 120,000 – 180,000 | 29,467 | 37% |
| 180,000 – onward | 51,667 | 45% |
VAT:
Australia has GST instead of VAT. The Standard rate is 10%.
Offboarding & Termination
An employee can resign or be terminated by the employer. The major grounds for termination include:
- Redundancy(operational changes)
- Conduct
- Poor performance
Notice period varies depending on the length of employment. During the probationary period, it is from 7 – 30 days, and for permanent employees, it ranges from one to twelve weeks.
An employee’s job might be affected by redundancy and the redundancy/severance pay for different employment terms in Australia are as follows:
*Note, there is a decrease in redundancy pay from 16 weeks to 12 weeks for employees with above 10 years of continuous employment service.
Visa and Immigration
Foreign nationals looking to work in Australia need to apply for a visa. Application is taken in through the various immigration programs administered by the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) of Australia.
The Temporary Skills Short visa (subclass 482) can be utilized by businesses to meet skill shortages by hiring foreign nationals to live and work in Australia for 2 years – or up to 4 years in some circumstances – where a suitably skilled Australian cannot be engaged.
