Pay Secrecy: Can Your Boss Stop You Talking About Your Pay?

Short answer: Not anymore.

What’s Pay Secrecy Anyway?

Pay secrecy is when your employer tries to stop you from talking about how much you earn with your coworkers, or from asking what they get paid.

Sounds dodgy, right? That’s because it is. When workers can’t discuss pay, some people end up getting paid less for doing the exact same job – and they never even know about it.

Pay secrecy is one of the biggest reasons Australia still has a gender pay gap. When nobody’s allowed to talk about wages, unfair pay just keeps happening behind closed doors.

But here’s the good news: union members fought hard and won new laws that changed everything.

How It Used to Work

Before these changes, your boss could make you sign a contract that stopped you from discussing your pay. They’d slip “pay secrecy clauses” into your employment contract or your workplace agreement, and if you talked about wages, you could get in trouble.

Not cool.

What’s Changed? (Thanks to Unions!)

The Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Secure Jobs, Better Pay) Act 2022 gave workers the right to talk about pay – and your employer can’t punish you for it.

Here’s what you need to know:

From 7 December 2022:

Any new employment contracts or workplace agreements can’t include pay secrecy clauses. They’re banned.

Got an older contract from before this date? Here’s what happens:

• Employment contracts: If yours has a pay secrecy clause, it stays in place until you get a new contract or your current one gets updated. If your current contract doesn’t have a pay secrecy clause, you’re free to talk about pay with other employees.
• Workplace agreements: Any pay secrecy clause is now void – like it never existed

From 7 June 2023:

Employers who try to sneak pay secrecy clauses into new contracts can be fined. It’s unlawful.

Why Should You Care?

When everyone can talk openly about pay, it’s way harder for employers to rip people off. Here’s what pay transparency means for you:

• You can find out if you’re being underpaid
• Gender pay gaps become obvious (and fixable)
• Younger workers are harder to exploit
• Everyone gets a fairer deal
• You can actually do something about pay discrimination

Union Members Made This Happen

These laws didn’t just appear out of nowhere: Union members campaigned for years to get them passed. This is what happens when workers join together and fight for their rights.

Imagine what else we could win if more young workers joined unions.

When you’re part of a union, you’re part of something bigger. You get:

• Legal protection and advice
• Someone in your corner when things go wrong
• The power to push for better pay and conditions
• A say in making the rules fairer for everyone

What You Should Do Now

Use your rights:

• Talk to your coworkers about what you’re earning
• If you think you’re being underpaid, speak up
• Join your union – there’s strength in numbers
• Know that the law backs you up

Pay transparency is powerful. For too long, workers were kept in the dark about what their coworkers earned, and that led to serious inequality. Now you have the right to discuss wages freely and challenge pay discrimination when you see it.

So speak up. Ask questions. And if you’re not already in a union, now’s the time to join.

Got questions about your pay or your rights at work? Your union can help you sort it out and back you up if there’s a problem.

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