Under the Vehicle Award wages must be paid weekly. You can only pay your employees fortnightly or monthly if the majority of your employees agree. You must pay your employees by Thursday in each pay cycle and not later than Wednesday in a week in which a public holiday falls on the Thursday or Friday.
How can I pay my employees?
You must pay your employees’ wages by cash, or by cheque or direct transfer into a bank account nominated by the employee as long as your employees agree.
You must pay your employees in full - you can’t give them goods or services instead of paying their wages.
You are also required to provide your employees with a payslip within one day of paying their wages, and keep certain records about the amounts that are paid to them. You can use our Pay slips and record-keeping templates to help you - find out more in the Record-keeping section.
Note: when an employee’s employment with your business ends, you must pay all their wages and entitlements to them on their last day of employment, by post the next working day, or on a specified day within 7 days. If the employee needs to visit the business to collect their final pay, you must pay them for an additional 4 hours. Visit the Termination - Final pay section for more information on what you have to pay them.
Employees receiving commission
Employees mainly employed to sell vehicles who receive commission are still entitled to the minimum rates of pay and entitlements in the Vehicle Award. You must ensure your commission-based employees receive at least the minimum entitlements in the Vehicle Award at all times. You also need to come to a written agreement with the employee about the basis on which commission will be paid and provide them with a copy within 21 days of starting employment.
See clause 44.9 of the Vehicle Award for details, including what the written agreement must cover and what happens when employment ends before a commission is paid.
Can I pay my employees a flat hourly rate?
Before you decide to pay your employees a flat hourly rate of pay that includes other monetary entitlements (such as allowances, penalty rates and overtime), you must consider the arrangements carefully to ensure you meet your obligations under the Vehicle Award. Remember, just because an employee agrees to a rate of pay, does not mean that you have met all of your obligations under the award.
This can be a complex legal issue and you should seek professional advice or help from your employer association about this.
Best Practice Tip
Our Self Audit Checklist is designed to help you check your compliance with certain key legal obligations. You can use it to ensure that your payslips and records comply with the Fair Work Act 2009. You can access the Self-audit checklist from the Checklists page.