What is the minimum wage for consulate employees?

Working in a consulate may not stop you from exercising Australian employment law rights, including access to the minimum wage.  Section 12(1) of the Foreign States Immunities Act 1985 (Cth) provides that the home country of the consulate, as your employer, will have to honour its obligations and employee entitlements “under a contract of employment that was made in Australia or was to be performed wholly or partly in Australia.” However, in order to rely on this provision you must either have been a permanent resident of Australia or an Australian citizen at the time you entered into the contract.

The home country, by carrying out governmental work in Australia, will classify as an employer within the meaning of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth).  This means that your employment rights including access to minimum wage entitlements and employee conditions may be protected while working in the consulate.

The application of this provision was recently examined by the Federal Circuit Court of Australia in Kassis v Republic of Lebanon [2014] FCCA 155. In that case the Court held that the Republic of Lebanon, through its Consulate, could not ignore its obligations towards a consular employee because he was an Australian permanent resident.