Can my employer stop me from disclosing my pay?

In December 2022, the federal government passed legislation that made a range of amendments to the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth). A part of these reforms introduced prohibitions on employers restricting employees’ ability to disclose their pay.

The Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) now provides employees with a choice to disclose or not disclose to any person:

• their remuneration; and
• any terms and conditions of their employment that are reasonably necessary to determine remuneration outcomes.

For example, a condition that may be necessary to determine an employee’s remuneration could be the number of hours they work if they are a casual employee.

Similarly, an employee may now ask another employee about their remuneration or terms and conditions that are reasonably necessary to determine remuneration outcomes.

This reflects a positive change for both employers and employees by introducing greater transparency in the workplace.

Therefore, if you are an employee who has disclosed your remuneration or asked another employee about their remuneration, your employer is prohibited from taking adverse action against you on the basis of that disclosure.

However, given the recent introduction of these amendments, there have been very few cases testing the application of these laws. This is why tailored legal advice is essential.

If you are an employer or employee and require further information or assistance, please contact us on (03) 9650 4555.