NES redundancy pay scale
Weeks of pay by years of continuous service, your bracket highlighted.
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Australia Redundancy Pay Calculator
Estimate your statutory redundancy entitlement under the National Employment Standards (NES) from your years of continuous service and weekly base pay.
Estimated redundancy pay
$17,600
Weeks of pay (NES scale)—
Weekly base pay—
Small business exempt?—
How Australian redundancy pay works
Under the National Employment Standards (NES), most employees made redundant are entitled to a set number of weeks of pay based on their years of continuous service, ranging from 4 weeks after 1-2 years up to 16 weeks after 9-10 years. The scale then drops to 12 weeks for 10 or more years, since long-serving staff typically also become entitled to long service leave. Small business employers with fewer than 15 employees are generally exempt from paying NES redundancy pay.
The formula
weeks of pay = NES scale (by completed years of continuous service)
redundancy pay = weeks × weekly base rate of pay
small business employers (fewer than 15 staff) are generally exempt
redundancy pay = weeks × weekly base rate of pay
small business employers (fewer than 15 staff) are generally exempt
Worked example
An employee with 6.5 years of continuous service and a $1,600 weekly base rate falls in the "6 to under 7 years" bracket, entitled to 11 weeks of pay. That's 11 × $1,600 = $17,600 in statutory redundancy pay, assuming their employer has 15 or more employees.
NES redundancy pay scale
| Years of continuous service | Redundancy pay |
|---|---|
| Less than 1 year | Nil |
| 1 year to under 2 years | 4 weeks |
| 2 years to under 3 years | 6 weeks |
| 3 years to under 4 years | 7 weeks |
| 4 years to under 5 years | 8 weeks |
| 5 years to under 6 years | 10 weeks |
| 6 years to under 7 years | 11 weeks |
| 7 years to under 8 years | 13 weeks |
| 8 years to under 9 years | 14 weeks |
| 9 years to under 10 years | 16 weeks |
| 10 years or more | 12 weeks |
Source: National Employment Standards, Fair Work Act 2009 (s.119). Some awards, enterprise agreements or contracts may provide a higher entitlement.
Frequently asked questions
How is redundancy pay calculated?
Weeks from the NES scale (4 to 16, dropping to 12 at 10+ years) × your weekly base pay.
Do small businesses pay redundancy?
Generally no, employers with fewer than 15 employees are NES-exempt.
Why does it drop at 10 years?
Long-serving staff usually also qualify for long service leave, paid separately.
What counts as weekly base pay?
Ordinary hours at base rate, excluding overtime, bonuses and most allowances.
Is redundancy pay taxed?
Tax-free up to an indexed ATO limit; amounts above that are taxed as an ETP.