Questions, answered straight

Is ShiftOwed part of Fair Work?

No. ShiftOwed is independent. It uses the minimum rates published in each modern award and cites the clause for every line, so you can check it yourself. If we ever disagree with the award, the award wins.

Does my visa change what I should be paid?

No. Award minimums apply to everyone working in Australia, including student and working-holiday visa holders.

What if my workplace has an enterprise agreement?

Then the agreement sets your pay, not the award, and ShiftOwed’s figures won’t apply. We ask you up front.

How far back can I go?

You can log shifts going back six years, the window for underpayment claims. Each shift is priced at the rates in force on its date. ShiftOwed holds award rates from 1 July 2025 so far; older shifts stay in your log and are priced once their rates are added.

Will my boss find out?

No. Your log is private to you. Nothing is sent to your employer unless you share your summary yourself.

Is this legal advice?

No. It’s general information that works out award minimums from what you enter. For help with a dispute, contact the Fair Work Ombudsman on 13 13 94 or your union.

Midnight splits, weekends and public holidays

A shift from Friday 7pm to Saturday 2am is two shifts as far as the award’s concerned. ShiftOwed splits it at midnight and at each evening and night boundary your award sets, then prices each piece at the right day’s rate. Public holidays come from your state’s calendar (from Nager.Date), so Melbourne Cup counts in Victoria and not in New South Wales.

Casual loading, the way your award adds it

Casual penalty rates add the 25% loading to the day’s percentage (a Hospitality casual’s Saturday is 125% + 25% = 150%), as the awards’ own tables do. Minimum shift lengths are topped up where the award sets one.

Your running tally and claim summary

Every shift with a payslip figure adds to a running owed-vs-paid tally across all the weeks you log. The claim summary lists every shift, every line and its clause, week by week, and saves as a PDF from your browser.

1 July rate changes

Award minimums change from the first full pay period on or after 1 July each year. ShiftOwed checks each award’s published rates every week (and daily in early July), keeps the old rates for the shifts before the change, and emails you your new hourly rates.

ShiftOwed stores only facts: each award’s minimum hourly rates, its percentages and clause numbers, dated from when they apply. The 2026–27 rates are those that apply from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026, after the Fair Work Commission’s Annual Wage Review 2026 (award rates up 4.75%, the lowest levels about 6%). We don’t republish award text; each line links to the award itself.

Public holidays come from Nager.Date, state by state. If a weekly rates check fails or a change looks implausible, ShiftOwed keeps the last good rates and shows a “rates as at” date.

What it doesn’t price (yet)

• Overtime: shifts long enough for overtime are flagged, and priced at the day’s rate, so your minimum may be higher.
• Junior rates for the Hospitality and Restaurant awards (adult rates are shown, with a note).
• Allowances other than evening and night amounts (meals, uniforms, tools, travel).
• Minimum shift lengths under the Cleaning Services Award, which depend on the site’s size.

Casual and part-time award workers in hospitality, fast food, retail, cleaning and office work: students, working-holiday makers and anyone who’s looked at a payslip with one flat rate on it and wondered. The Migrant Justice Institute’s survey estimates international students are underpaid about $61 million every week (SBS News), and since 1 January 2025 deliberate wage theft is a crime with up to 10 years’ jail (ABC News).

If your tally shows a gap: check your payslips and roster against your log, raise it with your employer if you feel safe to, talk to your union, or call the Fair Work Ombudsman on 13 13 94. It’s free, and your visa doesn’t change your rights at work.

Check a week free