Superannuation Legislation Amendment (Fair Super for Young Workers) Bill 2026
Senator DARMANIN (Victoria—Deputy Government Whip in the Senate) (09:17): Thank you, Senator Barbara Pocock, for your passionate advocacy on this issue. Compulsory superannuation is one of Labor's greatest achievements and one of the most successful examples of long-term economic nation-building anywhere in the world. For more than three decades, compulsory superannuation has transformed retirement in Australia.
Millions of Australians who would once have relied entirely on the age pension now retire with savings of their own. More importantly, more Australians are retiring with dignity—dignity that they deserve after their lifetime working contribution. Australians collectively own over $4 trillion in retirement savings, and, importantly, workers receive a fairer share of the wealth that they help create.
That is why Labor has always been the party of superannuation. We created compulsory superannuation and we defended it when others opposed it—and we always will. We have continued to strengthen it whenever we have had the opportunity.
Since coming to government, we have delivered a significant reform agenda in this area. We legislated the objective of superannuation. We have delivered the increase in the superannuation guarantee to 12 per cent.
We have strengthened the performance test. We have embedded superannuation in the National Employment Standards. We have ensured super is paid on government funded paid parental leave, and we introduced mandatory service standards because Australians deserve not only strong investment returns but quality service from their funds.
That record is important because it demonstrates a very clear principle: Labor believes Australia's superannuation system should continue to grow stronger. We do not view superannuation as something to be wound back. We do not see it as a burden.
We see it for what it is—an investment in the retirement security of working Australians. Labor built Australia's superannuation system. We have defended it when others sought to undermine it, and we will continue to strengthen it for future generations of Australian workers.
Senator Barbara Pocock referred to our national conference recently. At the ALP National Conference in July, I was very proud to be the seconder, alongside Dr Mulino, the Assistant Treasurer, to continue this commitment to strengthening superannuation through equal representation, sponsor nomination and the profit-to-member model that has been central to the success of Australia's superannuation system.
That reflects who we are as a party. We are never complacent about superannuation. We are always looking for opportunities to strengthen and improve retirement outcomes for working Australians.
Yes, there is always more to be done on the pathway to universal superannuation. To that point, delegates at the national conference also unanimously supported the inclusion of a commitment in Labor's national platform to extend compulsory superannuation contributions to all workers under the age of 18, regardless of how many hours they work. We should be ambitious about strengthening retirement outcomes.
We should be ambitious about ensuring every worker has the opportunity to build financial security in retirement from the very beginning of their working life. One of the most significant reforms the Albanese government has delivered in this space very recently is payday super. Payday super tackles a problem that cost Australian workers more than $6 billion in unpaid superannuation in the last financial year alone.
That is $6 billion that should have gone into workers retirement savings. It is $6 billion lost from the retirement incomes of Australians, whether retirement is four years away or 40 years away. Earlier this year, the Senate Economics Legislation Committee conducted an inquiry into the payday superannuation regulations.
The committee heard from superannuation funds, unions, employer groups, payroll providers and businesses across the country. One of the issues raised during that inquiry was whether compulsory superannuation coverage should be extended to all workers under the age of 18. As Chair of the committee, I note that the committee recognised extending superannuation coverage to under-18 workers as part of the long-term pathway towards universal superannuation.
I was very pleased to have that recognition in our report. The committee also recognised that payday super represents one of the biggest changes to the administration of superannuation in decades. Employers, software providers, payroll companies, superannuation funds and regulators are all currently focused on implementing those reforms.
The committee therefore concluded that successfully embedding payday super should be the immediate priority. It also recognised that extending superannuation coverage to under-18 workers would require further consultation and detailed work with workers, employers, unions and the superannuation sector. We want this policy approach to be carefully developed, which is the same approach that we have taken throughout all of our reforms in this area.
Labor supports stronger retirement outcomes and a fairer superannuation system, but we believe in getting major superannuation reform right. Superannuation reform, like all reform, works best when it is comprehensive, carefully designed and supported by proper consultation and analysis. Extending coverage to workers under 18 represents one part of the long-term journey towards universal superannuation.
I'd like to thank superannuation funds and other advocates who've been working towards reform to see universal superannuation and a strong super system. Super Members Council research estimates that about half a million young workers miss out on superannuation each year because of this rule. They estimate that this amounts to hundreds of millions of dollars in lost super contributions.
For all workers, the younger you are when you begin working, the more powerful each dollar of superannuation becomes. The benefit of superannuation in your retirement is not simply the contribution itself; it is the power and the magic of the compounding returns over time. A contribution made at a younger age has decades longer to grow than a contribution made later in life.
A relatively small amount contributed during your first job can, ultimately, be worth many times that amount in retirement. Time and compounding are extraordinarily powerful forces. That issue also has an important implication for women's retirement outcomes.
I suspect that not too many younger workers are sitting at home watching the Senate today. But, if there's one thing I wish every younger worker understood about superannuation, it is the power of compounding returns. It might not sound particularly exciting when you're working in your first shifts at the supermarket, cafe or local shop, but the reality is that the earlier money goes into your super account, the longer time it has to grow.
If anyone wants a straightforward explanation, the Moneysmart website has some excellent tools and examples that show exactly how compounding works. Once you understand the magic of compounding, you understand why starting early really matters. Last week I met with Dr Gemma Killen and colleagues from the Working Women's Alliance.
I appreciate the time that they took to discuss these issues and the perspectives that they bring to this debate. They highlighted that young women are more likely than young men to work part-time jobs. They highlighted that women under 18 are more likely to be affected by the current exemption, and they highlighted the long-term impacts that missing out on superannuation contributions can have throughout a working life.
We know that the super gender pay gap remains one of the biggest challenges facing our retirement income system. We know women retire with significantly less superannuation than men. Likewise, I'd like to acknowledge the advocacy of organisations such as Rest and the Super Members Council.
Rest has welcomed Labor's commitment to include this reform in the national platform. Importantly, they have also stressed the need for careful consideration, consultation and staged implementation. The Super Members Council has similarly supported the objective, while recognising the importance of allowing businesses time to adjust.
That is a critical point today, because supporting a policy objective is only one part of making good government policy. The other part is ensuring reforms are implemented successfully. Universal superannuation for under-18s is a principle supported across our party.
As a party of government, we will take the time—Dr Mulino mentioned this in the National Press Club address that he made yesterday—to work through in consultation and through the budget processes. I very much look forward to being a part of this work within government and with all of the advocates to work through this issue. But let's not forget the threats on compulsory superannuation that we've heard just over the last week.
We can talk and we can debate very well about how we want to improve the system, and we will always continue to do that. But we also have to think about the threats, because the super wars seemingly never end in this place. It's funny or it would be funny if it weren't so dangerous or, frankly, just flat out hypocritical.
One Nation had the chance here to back workers and back a pay rise for award-reliant and minimum-wage workers just mere months ago. Yet where were they? They were nowhere.
They flat out rejected the idea. They talk about measures to ease the cost of living yet don't back a pay rise for workers. They want Australians to fund today's expenses by sacrificing tomorrow's retirement.
This beggars belief. These are the threats that we have to deal with while we are currently trying to debate how we might advance the system. We know, of course, that One Nation has a long history of not supporting workers in this country.
They voted against same job, same pay. They called cutting taxes for all Australians 'a joke' but said that tax cuts for property investors were desperately needed, and they have called to get rid of penalty rates. Of course, the Liberals are a risk to all Australians when it comes to their retirement.
At the Press Club last week—as Senator Barbara Pocock also identified—Senator Bragg referred to compulsory superannuation as 'a loss of liberty' and described super for young workers as super for cats and dogs. It's pretty easy to see whose side One Nation and the coalition are on, and it's not yours. It's clear that the Liberals, Nationals and One Nation are all the same in the end, and they will come after workers' wages, workers' rights and workers' superannuation.
They all have the same agenda and are using the same tactics. Labor takes a fundamentally different approach. We believe that superannuation should be strengthened.
We believe retirement incomes should be protected, and we believe reforms should leave Australians with more security, not less. Labor supports stronger retirement outcomes. Labor supports a fairer superannuation system, which is exactly why one of the most important things this government has done is to legislate the objective of superannuation.
For the first time, Australia now has in law a clear statement of what superannuation is for. The objective is simple: to preserve savings, to deliver income for a dignified retirement alongside government support in an equitable and sustainable way. That matters because superannuation should never be treated as a short-term savings account, a political football or a source of funding whenever a new idea comes along.
Superannuation exists for one purpose: to help Australians retire with dignity and security after a lifetime of hard work. By legislating that objective, Labor provided clarity to workers, certainty to superannuation sector and confidence for future generations of Australians saving for retirement. It also sends a very clear message about the future direction of superannuation policy in this country.
We want to keep building and ending the super wars. As part of this, Labor supports continuing the conversation about how we expand opportunity and security for all Australian workers. But we also believe that reforms should be carefully designed, properly consulted on and implemented in the right sequence.
That is why our immediate focus remains on the successful implementation of payday super. It is why we will continue engaging with unions, employers, young workers and the sector. It is why we will continue looking for opportunities to strengthen Australia's retirement income system.
Labor created superannuation, Labor has defended superannuation and Labor will continue always to strengthen superannuation because Labor is and always will be the party of superannuation. Our record shows this, and we will continue to do so carefully and methodically to ensure that we have a well-supported universal system to ensure that this great Labor legacy endures for the very, very long term.