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The peak super body has called for the removal of an outdated super law which denies teenagers up to $10,000 from their retirement savings.
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SMC calls for teenage super law to be scrapped
10 January 2025
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The Super Members Council (SMC) has continued to pursue the abolition of a discriminatory superannuation law denying teenagers super contributions unless they work more than 30 hours a week.
According to the peak super body, this was not only an outdated law unfair to teenagers under 18 giving up time to work, but it was also difficult for businesses to administer.
Research conducted by SMC revealed in 2024–25, nine out of 10 teenagers did not reach the 30-hour work threshold each week, which denied about 505,000 teenage workers around $368 million in total super contributions a year.
SMC deputy CEO Georgia Brumby said the Australian government needed to eradicate the 30-hour threshold to guarantee all young Australian workers super contributions.
“Let’s not leave our teen workers high and dry this summer. Change the law so they can earn super, no matter how many hours they work,” she said.
“Early career contributions are some of the most valuable by retirement. Every Australian worker, at every age. Deserves the right to set themselves on the path to a dignified retirement.”
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“Australians strongly support universal super – and know it’s a workplace right. Super should be for everyone, paid from the first hour of your first job. Fixing this outdated exclusion is overdue.”
Based on the research by SMC, a typical teenager who worked for at least two years would benefit from almost $2,200 in retirement savings by the time they reached 18 years old.
It was also found that 85 per cent of Australians believed that anyone who participated in paid work should receive super contributions, regardless of age.
Brumby said teenagers now were missing out compared to those in the 1990s.
“When super was introduced in the 1990s, the super rate was only three per cent and there were fears teens’ smaller balances could be eaten away by fees and insurance,” she said.
“But now, the super rate is 11.5 per cent paid on top of wages and there are fee caps on low balance accounts and limits on insurance for younger workers to protect super balances.
The council said removing the current 30-hour threshold would also simplify administration for employers who currently face the task of tracking hours for workers under 18.
The removal of the threshold would also reduce the risk of underpayment, which many businesses accidentally experienced when increasing staff hours over summer or holidays.
Brumby said the SMC acknowledged the impact on some businesses but with tax deductions, the total cost would only be about $260 million a year.
“SMC recommends a transition period to give businesses time to adjust, as was done in 2022 when the coalition government ended another exclusion and required super to be paid for workers earning less than $450 a month,” she said.
“This is a modest investment for our children’s future – adding just 0.03 per cent to total employee costs. SMC supports a phased transition and looks forward to working with employer groups to bring about this key reform in a way that enables a smooth implementation for business.”
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