The changes to paid parental leave entitlements affect government payments only. Employers are still not required to offer their own paid parental leave, although many employers choose to provide this as a discretionary benefit. You must update your policies regarding parental leave from 1 July 2023.
The changes will affect parents whose babies are born or adopted from July 2023. The Labor government aims to progressively increase it to 26 weeks by 2026.
Other changes include:
- allowing partnered employees to claim a maximum of 20 weeks’ pay between them, with each partner taking at least 2 weeks (except in some circumstances)
- introducing a $350,000 family income limit (indexed annually from 1 July 2024) for claiming paid parental leave pay
- expanding the eligibility rules for fathers or partners to claim paid parental leave pay
- making the whole payment flexible so that eligible employees can claim it in multiple blocks until the child turns 2
- parents can share their Parental Leave Pay with each other
- allowing parents to both take parental leave at any time in the 24 months after the birth or placement of their child
- removing the requirement to return to work to be eligible for the entitlement
- pregnant employees and primary adoptive parents can access parental leave days up to six weeks before their expected due date
- Any unused Parental Leave Pay days will be forfeited to encourage both parents to access the payment. Single parents will get the total amount.
- increasing the Child Care Subsidy (CCS)
Employers should review their parental leave policies and practices to ensure compliance with these changes by 1 July 2023. If you would like advice or assistance to update your policies, please get in touch with our team, and we will be more than happy to help you ensure you are ready to go from 1 July.
The national minimum wage will increase from $21.38 per hour to $23.23 per hour for our lowest-paid employees. The minimum rate for awards will increase by 5.75%.
You must be paying the new rate as of 1 July 2023. Our team is here to help you with any questions or concerns about the new national minimum wage and the award rate increase.
If you are covered by a registered agreement, your pay rate might also increase, as the base pay rate in a registered agreement cannot be less than the base pay rate in the relevant award.
These changes will take effect from your first full pay cycle after 1 July 2023, meaning if your pay period starts on Monday, the changes will take effect on Monday, 3 July 2023.
Also increasing on 1 July is the Superannuation Guarantee rate from 10.5% to 11%. Speak with your accountants to ensure your contributions are following the latest legislation.
As always, our team is here to help you. You can book a call with an expert or call us directly on 1800 868 254. If you need help reviewing your HR Documentation or creating new policies, please reach out to us and we’ll be happy to assist.
You can find out more about paid parental leave entitlements here:
https://www.fairwork.gov.au/newsroom/news/changes-to-the-paid-parental-leave-scheme
https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/changes-if-you-get-family-payments?context=64479
For more information about the National Minimum Wage, visit:
https://www.fairwork.gov.au/newsroom/news/awr-2023#:~:text=National%20Minimum%20Wage%20increase,-The%20National%20Minimum&text=From%201%20July%202023%2C%20the,week%20or%20%2423.23%20per%20hour
All Superannuation information can be found here or talk to your accountant:
https://www.ato.gov.au/Rates/Key-superannuation-rates-and-thresholds/?=redirected_SuperRate&anchor=Superguaranteepercentage#Superguaranteepercentage
