Payday Super – What Dairy Farmers Need to Know (and Do)

Mel Shortland-Power
Mel Shortland-Power
January 15, 2026

If you’re running a dairy farm, payroll is already complex — variable hours, seasonal staff, relief milkers, award rules… the last thing you need is another compliance change.

But Payday Super is coming, and it’s important to understand what it means before it becomes law.

This blog kicks off a short weekly series to help dairy farmers understand:

  • What Payday Super actually is

  • What’s changing from the current system

  • What you should start thinking about now

No jargon. No scare tactics. Just clarity.

What is Payday Super?

Payday Super means superannuation must be paid at the same time as wages, instead of quarterly.

So rather than:

  • Paying wages weekly/fortnightly

  • Paying super once every three months

You’ll be required to:
👉 Pay super on, or very shortly after, every pay run

The aim from the government’s perspective is simple:

  • Reduce unpaid super

  • Make super payments more transparent for employees

Why this matters for dairy farming

Dairy payroll isn’t “set and forget”.

You’re often dealing with:

  • Variable hours

  • Split shifts

  • Casual and seasonal staff

  • Relief milkers

  • Pastoral Award compliance

Payday Super adds another layer of timing and accuracy to an already tight process.

The good news?
If you’re set up correctly, this doesn’t have to be painful.

When is Payday Super starting?

The legislation is expected to commence 1 July 2026 (subject to final passage).

That may feel a long way off — but payroll changes always take longer to embed than expected, especially in operational businesses like farming.

What to do now (don’t panic)

You don’t need to change how you pay super today.

But you should start:

  • Understanding your current payroll process

  • Identifying where things are manual

  • Checking how your super is currently calculated and paid

PaySauce Australia is a payroll system built specifically for dairy farming, designed to handle award interpretation, variable hours, and — importantly — automated super calculations aligned to each pay run.

If you’d like to see what Payday Super could look like in practice:

👉 Book in a call to chat with me

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Payday Super – What Dairy Farmers Need to Know (and Do)

Mel Shortland-Power
Mel Shortland-Power
January 15, 2026

If you’re running a dairy farm, payroll is already complex — variable hours, seasonal staff, relief milkers, award rules… the last thing you need is another compliance change.

But Payday Super is coming, and it’s important to understand what it means before it becomes law.

This blog kicks off a short weekly series to help dairy farmers understand:

  • What Payday Super actually is

  • What’s changing from the current system

  • What you should start thinking about now

No jargon. No scare tactics. Just clarity.

What is Payday Super?

Payday Super means superannuation must be paid at the same time as wages, instead of quarterly.

So rather than:

  • Paying wages weekly/fortnightly

  • Paying super once every three months

You’ll be required to:
👉 Pay super on, or very shortly after, every pay run

The aim from the government’s perspective is simple:

  • Reduce unpaid super

  • Make super payments more transparent for employees

Why this matters for dairy farming

Dairy payroll isn’t “set and forget”.

You’re often dealing with:

  • Variable hours

  • Split shifts

  • Casual and seasonal staff

  • Relief milkers

  • Pastoral Award compliance

Payday Super adds another layer of timing and accuracy to an already tight process.

The good news?
If you’re set up correctly, this doesn’t have to be painful.

When is Payday Super starting?

The legislation is expected to commence 1 July 2026 (subject to final passage).

That may feel a long way off — but payroll changes always take longer to embed than expected, especially in operational businesses like farming.

What to do now (don’t panic)

You don’t need to change how you pay super today.

But you should start:

  • Understanding your current payroll process

  • Identifying where things are manual

  • Checking how your super is currently calculated and paid

PaySauce Australia is a payroll system built specifically for dairy farming, designed to handle award interpretation, variable hours, and — importantly — automated super calculations aligned to each pay run.

If you’d like to see what Payday Super could look like in practice:

👉 Book in a call to chat with me

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