3 September 2026

Murdoch University will back-pay more than $4.9 million, including interest and superannuation, to more than 2,100 underpaid employees, as part of an Enforceable Undertaking (EU) with the Fair Work Ombudsman.

The university has already rectified a significant proportion of the underpayments, with more than $4.7 million repaid to 1,830 current and former employees.

As at August 2026, $195,875 remains outstanding to 271 affected employees, with additional calculations underway for 256 employees as part of an ongoing remediation program.

Under the EU, the university must pay a contrition payment of $125,000 to the Commonwealth Consolidated Revenue Fund and put in place a range of measures to ensure future compliance.

All underpaid staff were employed at the university’s campus in Perth. The impacted employees were underpaid between 2015 and 2025, under the university’s 2014, 2018 and 2023 enterprise agreements, and the Fitness Industry Award 2010 and 2020.

Of the employees identified as underpaid to date, 81 per cent were professional services staff in non-teaching positions. About 19 per cent were casual academic staff. Most impacted staff were casual workers but some full-time and part-time employees were also affected.

Most of the underpayments resulted from the university applying incorrect classifications and missed step-increments leading to underpayment of overtime rates, shift loadings and minimum engagement entitlements to professional staff; and underpaying PhD, tutoring, and other academic activities rates to casual academic staff.

Payments to impacted individual employees range from $4 up to $40,600 including superannuation and interest, with the average payment being $2,578.

Murdoch University self-reported its non-compliance to the Fair Work Ombudsman in March 2022 after conducting reviews prompted by the FWO’s correspondence in 2020 to all universities urging them to check their compliance with workplace laws.

Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth said the Enforceable Undertaking reflects the regulator’s focus on improving compliance in the broader university sector.

“Murdoch University deserves credit for engaging with us and committing substantial resources to identify and rectify underpayments and strengthen its systems,” Ms Booth said.

“We don’t want systemic non-compliance to be a feature of the higher education sector going forward, and we expect employers to take sustained and proactive steps to ensure employees receive their full lawful entitlements.”

The EU commits Murdoch University to completing its calculation and back-payment to underpaid employees, with interest and superannuation, within 240 days of commencement.

Murdoch University must also:

• provide the Fair Work Ombudsman with evidence of improved payroll and record-keeping systems
• deliver training to staff with responsibilities for human resources, payroll and employee management
• commission up to two independent audits of its compliance with workplace laws and enterprise agreements
• establish and maintain a complaint and review mechanism for employees
• operate a dedicated employee hotline for workplace enquiries
• strengthen governance oversight, including reporting to its Senate Audit and Risk Committee on workplace compliance.

Improving workplace compliance in the university sector has been a priority for the Fair Work Ombudsman since 2022, with Murdoch University the 16th university to sign an EU with the FWO related to underpayments.

Past and present Murdoch University employees with queries about wages and entitlements should contact the university in the first instance.

All employers and employees seeking free advice and assistance about their workplace rights and obligations can visit www.fairwork.gov.au or call the Fair Work Infoline on 13 13 94. A free interpreter service is available on 13 14 50.

Workplace issues can be reported online anonymously, including in languages other than English. Employees can also seek information from their union, if they are a member, or from their employer. Employers can seek information from their employer association if they are a member.