In The Aussie Corporate 2026 Salary Survey, three groups earn well for each hour they work: Resources, Government and in-house lawyers. Hour for hour, Resources out-pays Investment Banking. Per hour, Government pays about as much as Finance and Tech.
Do longer hours mean more pay?
Up to a point. Median base pay climbs with the hours people work, to a peak of $200K at 55 to 60 hours a week. At 60 hours or more it falls back to $181K.
| 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.
Per hour, the long weeks lose. A 60-hour week pays 20% less per hour than a 40-hour week.
1 in 4 people in the survey work 45 hours or more a week. Only 1 in 5 of them earn more than $180K a year.
Does higher pay mean more stress?
Yes. Stress and the inability to switch off both climb with pay. This is the share who rate their stress 4 or more out of 5, and the share who cannot switch off, by base pay:
- Under $100K: 41% stressed, 27% cannot switch off
- $100K to $140K: 47% and 29%
- $140K to $180K: 47% and 28%
- $180K to $250K: 58% and 37%
- $250K and over: 68% and 49%
Leave gets harder to take as well. 70% of people earning under $100K say taking leave is easy. Above $250K, 55% say it is hard.
89% of people working 60 hours or more rate their stress 4 or 5 out of 5.
Which industries pay well for fewer hours?
Resources
Office roles in Resources, such as finance, HR and IT, earn about 10% more than the same roles elsewhere. Engineers earn about 30% more.
80% of Resources staff work 45 hours or less, 87% get an annual bonus and 58% rate their pay as fair. 40% hold shares.
The cost is time in the office. Half of Resources staff are in 4 or 5 days a week, against 1 in 4 across the survey.
Government
Government has the best hours in the survey. 79% of government staff work 40 hours a week or less, against 49% of everyone else, and 58% can switch off at night, against 43%.
The median base is $136K. The ceiling is lower than elsewhere: 94% of government staff earn under $200K, 88% get no annual bonus and government pay falls behind from Year 10.
In-house law
In-house lawyers and lawyers at top-tier firms take home about the same base pay on average. 15% of in-house lawyers work 50 hours or more a week, against 28% at top-tier firms.
Half of in-house lawyers can switch off after work. At top-tier firms it is a quarter.
Which jobs have the most stress?
Big Tech recorded the highest stress levels, with 67% rating theirs 4 or more out of 5. More than half of Big 4 staff do the same. The survey average is 49%.
Among companies that sell their own products or services, Construction stands out. 64% of construction staff rate their stress 4 or more, 33% work 45 hours or more and 39% cannot switch off.
Transport sits at the calm end of the same group, with 30% rating their stress 4 or more. In Property it is 41%.
How many hours does a corporate employee work?
1 in 4 people in the survey work 45 hours or more a week. Outside government, 49% work 40 hours or less.
The share working 45 hours or more changes sharply by industry:
- Investment Banking: 66%
- Law: 47%
- Construction: 33%
- Property: 24%
- Finance: 23%
- Professional Services: 21%
- Tech: 20%
- Telcos and Utilities: 12%
Construction, Property and Telcos and Utilities are parts of the survey's Corporate group, companies that sell their own products or services.
Professional Services hours are about average. It pays about 10% less per hour than people with the same years of experience elsewhere.
How do you check your own pay?
Compare your salary with people in the same job, industry and level in AusCorp Vault, our free salary benchmark.
Every slide behind this article is on our 2026 Salary Survey page, with the industry results under by industry. The first part of the survey, 10 things nobody tells you about your pay, covers pay by experience, city and hours.
More from the 2026 Salary Survey
- How much do Big 4 consultants earn in Australia?
- How much do corporate lawyers earn in Australia?
- How much do investment bankers earn in Australia?
- What is a typical bonus in Australia?
Source: The Aussie Corporate 2026 Salary Survey, data as at September 2026. Spotted an error? Correct something.
