Recover unpaid wages and entitlements
You were underpaid. Get it back, with interest and super.
Most underpaid employees do not know they have been underpaid until someone runs the numbers. We audit your actual pay against the award or enterprise agreement that applies, calculate what you are owed in wages, overtime, penalty rates, allowances and superannuation, and recover the shortfall directly from your employer or through the Fair Work Ombudsman. Underpayments compound, and the longer they go unaddressed the more there is to recover.
What does recovering underpaid wages and entitlements involve?
Underpayment is a breach of the minimum entitlements set by the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (the Act), the National Employment Standards, modern awards, and enterprise agreements. Employers must pay at or above the applicable rate for the work you do, including overtime, penalty rates, allowances, leave loading, and superannuation. A six-year limitation period applies to recovery actions under the Act. Most underpayments happen because an employer has misclassified the employee, applied the wrong award, or treated a salary as covering all entitlements when the contract does not actually allow that.
How do I know if I have been underpaid?
Start by working out which modern award or enterprise agreement covers your role, then compare the minimum rates and conditions against what you actually got paid. Underpayment most commonly shows up in unpaid overtime, missing penalty rates, allowances not paid, leave not paid out correctly, or superannuation not paid on the full amount. We run the audit for you.
How far back can I go to recover unpaid wages?
The Act sets a six-year limitation period for wage recovery, so you can recover underpayments going back six years from the date you commence action. Anything older than that is generally not recoverable.
Will I have to sue my employer to get the money back?
Not always. Many underpayments resolve once the employer is sent a properly calculated letter of demand from a lawyer setting out the shortfall and the legal basis. Where the employer disputes the amount or refuses to pay, the matter can be lodged with the Fair Work Ombudsman or filed in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia.
Can I recover unpaid superannuation as well?
Yes. Superannuation is part of your minimum entitlements and is recoverable along with wages and other underpayments. Unpaid super is also reportable to the Australian Taxation Office, which has its own enforcement powers against the employer.
Underpayment quantified.
We audit the actual hours, the applicable award, and the correct rate to produce a defensible number.
Demand that lands.
A lawyer's letter setting out the shortfall and the legal basis usually opens the conversation.
Full recovery, not partial.
Wages, overtime, penalty rates, allowances, super, and leave loading all on the same demand.
Want us to run the underpayment numbers?
Most employees underestimate what they are owed because they have only worked out one part of it. The first call gives you a clear estimate of the total shortfall and the recovery path.
You worked the hours. They did not pay them properly.
You suspect you have been underpaid but you cannot tell whether it is a small amount over a long period or a large amount you have not noticed yet. You do not know which award applies, what overtime and penalty rates were actually owed, or whether confronting your employer will end the relationship before you have recovered anything.
- We will identify the modern award or enterprise agreement that covered your role.
- We will audit your actual pay against the correct entitlements for every pay period in scope.
- We will calculate the full shortfall: wages, overtime, penalty rates, allowances, leave loading, and superannuation.
- We will send the demand and negotiate the settlement.
- We will lodge with the Fair Work Ombudsman or commence proceedings in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia if the employer refuses.
Something about your pay never quite added up.
Your roster runs into weekends and late nights but you are paid a flat salary, or you have been working through your breaks without anyone tracking it, or your contract describes a salary that covers all entitlements but the maths does not actually work out at award rates. You have stopped trusting that the pay slip is right, you do not know how to prove it on your own, and you are wary of starting a fight with an employer you might still be working for.
What's included in your underpayment recovery service
- Award and enterprise agreement classification check.
- Pay-period audit for every period in the recovery window.
- Calculation of unpaid wages, overtime, penalty rates, allowances, leave loading, and superannuation.
- Letter of demand to the employer setting out the shortfall and legal basis.
- Negotiation and settlement.
- Fair Work Ombudsman lodgement, or Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia proceedings, if escalation is required.
Why most underpayment claims that do not get advice end up smaller.
Employees who try to recover underpayments without proper calculations almost always settle for less than they are owed. The employer offers a round number, the conversation stalls, and the employee accepts because the alternative is months of uncertainty. The amount on the table rarely includes the unpaid superannuation, the leave loading, the casual loading on top of penalty rates, or interest under the Act. Six years of compounding shortfall gets paid out as twelve months of base wages, and the employee signs a deed releasing every other claim they had at the same time.
Here is how we get the full amount, not a token settlement.
We start with the right award classification and a forensic pay-period audit, so the demand goes out with a defensible total instead of a guess. Where superannuation has been missed, we calculate the shortfall on the gross wages including overtime and add the interest that compounds while it sits unpaid. The letter of demand sets out the calculation, the legal basis, and a clear position on what will happen if the employer does not pay: Fair Work Ombudsman engagement or proceedings. Most employers settle at the demand stage because the alternative is worse, and the settlement includes everything you are owed, not just the bits that are convenient to round up.
Three steps to recovering what you are owed.
Audit, demand, settlement.
1
Audit complete.
We identify the correct award and audit your actual pay across every period within the six-year recovery window.
2
Demand sent.
We send the letter of demand setting out the shortfall, the legal basis, and the recovery path.
3
Settlement received.
We negotiate the settlement, or lodge with the Fair Work Ombudsman or court if the employer refuses.
Employment lawyers who recover unpaid wages, super and entitlements for employees.
We know how exposed it feels to raise a wage dispute with an employer you are still working for, or to chase a payment from one who has already let you go. We have recovered underpayments across hospitality, retail, professional services, healthcare and construction, and the pattern is consistent: the demands that land are the ones backed by award-grade calculations, not the ones based on a feeling that the maths is wrong. Our team audits the entitlement properly, drafts the demand, and runs the recovery from start to finish. You end up with the full amount you were owed, paid out cleanly, and a record of what actually happened.
We understand you want to know the cost, before we get started...
We will map out our process, from beginning to end, so you know what the journey will look like before you get started.
We will provide you with a clear and detailed Work Proposal covering each step along the way.
Our fair fees are all-inclusive. No hidden costs for telephone calls, emails, photocopying, couriers, or coffee.
Find out what your employer actually owes you.
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Read more about wage underpayment, the six-year recovery window, and how JFM Law can help.
