Same Job, Same Pay and Labour Hire

23 / 09 / 2026

The federal government’s Same Job, Same Pay labour hire laws changed how labour hire can be used in workplaces covered by enterprise agreements. If your warehouse or distribution centre has its own enterprise agreement, it’s worth understanding how the rules work before they become an issue.

Same Job, Same Pay for labour hire

The laws were introduced through the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Closing Loopholes) Act 2023. They allow the Fair Work Commission to make a regulated labour hire arrangement order.

When an order applies, the labour hire provider must pay its workers at least what the host would pay its own employees under the host’s enterprise agreement for the same work. This is called the protected rate of pay. Orders could not take effect before 1 November 2024.

When it applies

Broadly, an order can only be made where:

  • A labour hire provider supplies workers to a host business
  • The host has an enterprise agreement that would cover those workers if they were employed directly
  • The host is not a small business (generally, businesses with fewer than 15 employees are excluded)
  • The arrangement isn’t primarily a genuine service contract, where the provider delivers a service rather than supplying labour

An application can be made by an employee, a union, the host or the labour hire provider, and the Commission must be satisfied the tests are met.

There are also exemptions, including for workers engaged for short periods (generally three months or less) to cover surges or absences, although the Commission can change that period in some cases.

Have an enterprise agreement and use labour hire? ASTAR can help you review your labour hire mix. Call 1300 562 562 or send us an enquiry.

What it means for you

  • If your site is covered by a modern award only, with no enterprise agreement, these orders generally won’t apply. Labour hire workers must still be paid correctly under the relevant award — see labour hire rates in Sydney for what’s included.

  • If your site has an enterprise agreement, you should:

  • Check whether any orders have been made or applied for involving your business

  • Understand how your agreement rates compare with the award rates your labour hire workers are paid
  • Talk to your labour hire provider about how they’d handle an order, including information sharing — hosts can be required to provide agreement rate details to providers
  • Factor possible changes into your labour budget, especially for long-term, full-time labour hire placements

Planning ahead

For many warehouses, the laws are a prompt to review how labour hire is used on site.

  • Short-term surge and absence cover is what labour hire does best, and it’s the area least likely to be affected.
  • Long-term labour hire in permanent roles is where orders are most likely to bite. It may make sense to convert some of those workers into direct employees. Our guide to labour hire vs permanent staff can help you find the right mix.

FAQs

Does it apply to every business?

No. It only applies where the Fair Work Commission makes an order, which requires the host to have an enterprise agreement covering the work, and small businesses are excluded.

Does it apply to short-term work?

There’s generally an exemption for workers engaged for three months or less, though the Commission can change this in some circumstances.

Who pays the protected rate?

The labour hire provider pays it to the worker, which usually affects the charge rate to the host.

Talk to ASTAR

ASTAR Recruitment has supplied warehouse and logistics workers across NSW since 2006. We pay every worker correctly for the role they perform, invoice weekly with electronic timesheets, and can work through how your labour hire mix fits with your enterprise agreement.

Call 1300 562 562 or send us your enquiry.

This article is general information only and isn’t legal advice. The law continues to develop through Fair Work Commission decisions. For your situation, check the Fair Work Commission website or get workplace relations advice.