Daniel Mulino (Fraser, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

Firstly, I would like to thank all those members who have contributed to this debate. The Treasury Laws Amendment (Payday Superannuation) Bill 2025 and related bill reflect the government's commitment to a stronger superannuation system, which will ensure a dignified retirement for all Australians. The payday superannuation bill will require super contributions to be paid at the same frequency as wages, which will benefit the retirement income of around 8.9 million Australian workers. The bill will help to address the problem of unpaid super, which is putting the retirement outcomes of millions of Australians at risk every year.

The ATO has estimated that around $5.2 billion in super went unpaid in 2021-2022. That's around $100 million every week that workers earned but never received. In the current quarterly system, unpaid super is occurring too often and for too long. Through this bill, employees will benefit from more frequent contributions that compound over their working life. Employees will be able to more quickly recognise when they are missing contributions that they are owed and the Australian Taxation Office will be better equipped to enforce the law and recover unpaid super earlier. This will help to avoid unpaid super building up for employers and limit the amount of super that never gets recovered. Unpaid super disproportionately affects younger workers and those in insecure work; these are the people who can least afford to miss out on retirement savings.

In a typical ATO investigation of an unpaid super case, a worker has missed out on nearly two years worth of super contributions. For the average 35-year-old, failing to recover this money could reduce their retirement savings by around $32,000 in today's dollars. The bill will also improve the way the superannuation guarantee charge works. It will encourage employers to contribute for their employees in full and on time. Where employers don't contribute on time, it will provide a clearer path for employers to correct their mistake and it will deliver more significant consequences for employers who continue to do the wrong thing.

The increased frequency of contributions will also result in greater earnings on contributions, as they are in workers' funds sooner. In the current system, a 25-year-old median income worker who is paid their wages fortnightly and their super quarterly could be $6,000 better off in today's dollars at retirement with the shift to payday super.

The government will not be supporting the amendments moved and tabled by the shadow Treasurer. I accept that businesses across the economy will need to make system and process changes to implement what is contained in this bill. We share the desire of those opposite to support employers and small businesses through the implementation of this change. However, where we differ is that we believe every single worker should benefit from these changes from 1 July 2026. We've made sensible changes that will support employers and digital service providers in the transition to the new system. We adjusted the default due date for contributions to be received by superannuation funds, changing this from seven calendar days to seven business days.

We have also introduced an extended due date of 20 business days for situations where an employer needs to change the fund they contribute to for an employee. In addition, the ATO has indicated that it will adopt a transitional compliance approach during the first year. Employers who make a genuine attempt to comply, even if they face technical issues, will not be targeted by ATO compliance.

The shadow Treasurer compared the staged rollout of Single Touch Payroll with payday rollout, suggesting the government should adopt the same approach. The key difference here is that Single Touch Payroll is a reporting measure, whereas payday is a cashflow measure. A staggered approach in this instance would result in workers losing out on their super balances.

We listened to the feedback from stakeholders, and this bill strikes the correct balance. It avoids both delays and further financial harm for workers who do not currently have super paid into their accounts. This bill is an important step forward in strengthening the super system and achieving a dignified retirement for all Australians. I commend this bill to the House.

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