More than 181,000 workers had a total of $453 million in underpaid wages back-paid in 2025–26, according to the Fair Work Ombudsman’s annual report, released on Thursday 29 October. That was about $95 million more than the year before, an increase of 27%, and takes cumulative back-payments over the past six financial years to close to $2.5 billion.

Tip-offs at a record

The regulator received a record 31,596 anonymous reports, 23% more than the 25,608 received in 2024–25.

“Anonymous reports help us identify emerging issues, detect patterns, and target education, engagement and compliance activities where they’re needed most,” Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth said.

Where the money came from

  • Large corporates accounted for $217.3 million of the back-payments, paid to more than 110,000 workers.
  • Enforceable undertakings: the regulator executed 15, under which employers back-paid $106.6 million in wages and entitlements, including super and interest.
  • Compliance notices: 1,392 were issued, recovering more than $33 million for more than 17,000 workers.
  • Infringement notices: 791 were issued for payslip and record-keeping breaches, totalling $831,891 in fines.
  • Litigation: 60 cases were commenced and $2.3 million in penalties secured.

The priority sectors

In fast food, restaurants and cafes, the regulator recovered more than $5.6 million for 3,538 workers and commenced 16 litigations, about 27% of all cases it started in the year. In building and construction, recoveries exceeded $6.8 million for 932 workers, with 14 litigations commenced. In aged care, two enforceable undertakings with major providers delivered more than $16 million in recoveries.

Among the penalties highlighted was $213,120 against the University of New South Wales over systemic record-keeping and pay slip contraventions that hindered the regulator’s investigation into underpayments.

The message for employers

“For all employers, including large corporates, the Fair Work Ombudsman expects a high priority to be placed on following workplace laws,” Ms Booth said. “We offer a wealth of free resources and information to assist voluntary compliance, while also holding employers to account when they are not meeting their obligations to their employees.”

The infringement notice figures are a reminder that the regulator does not need to prove an underpayment to issue a fine: payslip and record-keeping failures are enough. For small and medium employers, accurate records are both the first line of defence and the cheapest one.

Source: Fair Work Ombudsman media release on the 2025–26 annual report, 29 October 2026.