Legal obligations

Your obligations to employees and other workers come from a variety of sources - federal, state/territory laws, industrial awards and agreements, tribunal decisions and contracts of employment (whether they are written or verbal).

Some of your obligations as an employer are to:

  • pay correct wages
  • reimburse your employees for work-related expenses
  • ensure a safe working environment
  • not act in a way that may seriously damage an employee's reputation or to cause mental distress or humiliation
  • not act in a way that damages the trust and confidence necessary for an employment relationship
  • not provide a false or misleading reference
  • forward PAYE tax instalments to the Tax Office
  • make appropriate payment under the Superannuation Guarantee legislation.

You may also need to deal with Centrelink - you may be an employer of Centrelink customers and be asked to provide wage and employment details for your employees. Centrelink also has resources to aid you in finding out payments and services that can help both your business and your staff.

What to do... 

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