Do salaried employees get paid overtime in Australia?

Whether a salary covers your overtime depends on whether an award or agreement applies to you. The 38 hour limit, when extra hours are reasonable, time in lieu, and how long corporate Australia works, from our 2026 Salary Survey.

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It depends on whether an award or enterprise agreement covers you. If one does, overtime is part of what you are owed, and an annualised salary under an award generally has to add up to at least what the award would have paid. If you are award and agreement free, you only get a higher rate for overtime if your contract says so.

How many hours can your employer ask you to work?

Under the National Employment Standards, an employer must not request or require a full-time employee to work more than 38 hours a week, unless the additional hours are reasonable. An award or enterprise agreement can set different hours. For part-time employees the limit is 38 hours or their agreed ordinary hours, whichever is lower.

You can refuse to work additional hours if they are unreasonable.

What makes extra hours reasonable?

The National Employment Standards list what must be taken into account:

  • any risk to your health and safety
  • your personal circumstances, including family responsibilities
  • the needs of the workplace
  • whether you are paid overtime, penalty rates or other compensation for the extra hours, or a level of pay that reflects an expectation of working them
  • any notice your employer gave you to work the extra hours
  • any notice you gave that you would refuse them
  • the usual patterns of work in the industry
  • the nature of your role and your level of responsibility
  • whether the hours fit an averaging arrangement in your award or agreement, or one agreed in writing if you are award free
  • any other relevant matter.

On a salary, the fourth factor asks whether your pay already reflects an expectation of working extra hours.

Do salaried employees get overtime?

If an award or agreement covers you

Overtime is work outside the ordinary hours set by your award, agreement or contract. Your award or agreement says when overtime applies and what it pays. Fair Work lists "all managers and professionals are award free" as a myth: some are covered, and it suggests checking the Professional Award and the Miscellaneous Award as well as your industry award. A contract can't give you less than your award.

Some awards allow an annualised wage, a fixed amount paid each pay period that can cover overtime. It generally must not be less than what the award would have paid you for the work done that year. It is usually reviewed every 12 months, and if you were paid less, your employer must pay the difference. The award may also cap the overtime hours you can work before an extra payment is due.

A contract salary can also cover award entitlements such as overtime, penalties and allowances. Fair Work calls this a contractual offsetting arrangement. Your pay slip must show your annual rate of pay.

If you are award and agreement free

You are entitled to at least the national minimum wage and the National Employment Standards. Your ordinary hours can average no more than 38 a week. You don't get a higher rate for overtime unless your contract says so. Because of that, Fair Work says it may be appropriate to ask whether your pay is enough to compensate for the extra hours when deciding if they are reasonable.

Awards don't apply at all to a high income employee who has accepted a written guarantee of annual earnings above the high income threshold, which is $190,100 from 1 July 2026.

What is time in lieu?

Time in lieu, also called time off in lieu or TOIL, is paid time off instead of overtime pay. Some awards and agreements allow it. Under the Clerks Private Sector Award:

  • you and your employer must agree in writing for each lot of overtime, and an exchange of emails counts
  • you get the same number of hours off as the overtime hours you worked
  • the time off must be taken within 6 months, at times you both agree
  • if it isn't taken in 6 months, your employer must pay it at the overtime rate in the next pay period
  • you can ask to be paid out at any time, and the payment is due in the next pay period
  • your employer must not pressure you into the agreement.

How long do corporate employees work?

In The Aussie Corporate 2026 Salary Survey, 23% of people work 45 hours or more a week. In Investment Banking it is 66%, and in Law it is 47%.

Median base pay rises with hours up to 55 to 60 hours a week, then falls back:

Hours worked a week Median base pay
Under 35 $138K
35 to 40 $129K
40 to 45 $148K
45 to 50 $161K
50 to 55 $179K
55 to 60 $200K
60 plus $181K

Median base pay by hours worked per week, from The Aussie Corporate 2026 Salary Survey, data as at September 2026.

Per hour, a 60-hour week pays 20% less than a 40-hour week. 89% of people working 60 hours or more rate their stress 4 or 5 out of 5. Every slide is on our 2026 Salary Survey page.

How do you check you are paid fairly for your hours?

Keep a record of the hours you work. Fair Work's Record My Hours app is built for this, and it helps when an annualised wage is reviewed. To compare your salary with people in the same job and industry, try AusCorp Vault, our free salary benchmark.

This is general information, not legal advice. Check your own award, agreement or contract for the overtime rules that apply to you.

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