Employment law in South Australia

• Fair Work Act 1994 (SA) (SA)

  The South Australian industrial relations statute governing state system employees, which are mainly state public sector and local government employees. It provides for state awards and enterprise agreements, unfair dismissal claims in the South Australian Employment Tribunal (lodged within 21 days of the dismissal taking effect, s 106), monetary claims for unpaid wages (made within 6 years after the amount became payable, s 31) and, from 1 January 2026, civil penalties for deliberate and systematic underpayment (s 104).

• South Australian Employment Tribunal Act 2014 (SA) (SA)

  Establishes the South Australian Employment Tribunal, which sits as the South Australian Employment Court when acting in court session. Together they hear industrial, employment, work injury and work health and safety matters in South Australia, including state system unfair dismissal claims and unresolved workplace equal opportunity complaints referred by the Commissioner for Equal Opportunity.

• Long Service Leave Act 1987 (SA) (SA)

  Provides long service leave for most South Australian workers. After 10 years of continuous service an employee is entitled to 13 weeks of long service leave, with a further 1.3 weeks for each later year of service (s 5). If employment ends after at least 7 years but less than 10, the worker is generally entitled to a pro rata payment, unless they were dismissed for serious and wilful misconduct or ended the employment unlawfully, for example without giving the required notice.

• Equal Opportunity Act 1984 (SA) (SA)

  Makes discrimination, sexual harassment and victimisation unlawful in South Australian workplaces on grounds including sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, intersex status, race, age, disability, pregnancy, caring responsibilities and, since 1 September 2023, being or having been subjected to domestic abuse. Complaints go to Equal Opportunity SA, generally within 12 months, and unresolved workplace complaints are referred to the South Australian Employment Tribunal.

• Public Sector Act 2009 (SA) (SA)

  Governs employment in the South Australian public sector, including public sector principles and values, employment conditions, performance and discipline, and the role of the Commissioner for Public Sector Employment.

• Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (CTH)

  Covers private enterprise employees in South Australia. It contains the National Employment Standards, modern awards and enterprise agreements, unfair dismissal, the general protections, stop bullying and stop sexual harassment orders, and the underpayment, penalty and small claims regime.

• Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth) (CTH)

  The federal sexual harassment and sex discrimination law, providing an alternative to the South Australian equal opportunity system through the Australian Human Rights Commission and the federal courts.

• Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth) (CTH)

  Prohibits disability discrimination in South Australian workplaces and requires reasonable adjustments unless they would impose unjustifiable hardship.

• South Australian Employment Tribunal (SAET)

  Hears unfair dismissal claims, wages claims and other industrial and employment matters for South Australian state system employees, underpayment claims under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) with no filing fee, long service leave disputes, unresolved workplace equal opportunity complaints, and work injury and work health and safety matters. Unfair dismissal claims must generally be filed within 21 days of the dismissal becoming effective, and there is no fee to lodge one.

• Fair Work Commission (Adelaide registry)

  Hears unfair dismissal and general protections applications for South Australian private enterprise employees, within 21 days for dismissal claims, and stop bullying and sexual harassment applications. Its sexual harassment process is open to workers generally, and council workplaces may still be covered by its general protections, bullying and sexual harassment laws.

• Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Fair Work Division)

  Hears general protections court applications and Fair Work underpayment claims for SA workers, including small claims of $100,000 or less.

• Equal Opportunity SA

  Receives and conciliates complaints of discrimination, sexual harassment and victimisation in South Australian workplaces at no cost to the complainant.

• South Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (SACAT)

  Reviews a decision by the Commissioner for Equal Opportunity not to accept a late complaint (you must apply within one month of the decision) and hears equal opportunity complaints that are not about work. Unresolved workplace complaints go to SAET instead.

• SafeWork SA

  South Australia's work health and safety regulator, which also publishes information about South Australian wages, conditions and long service leave and can help resolve long service leave disputes.

• Supreme Court of South Australia

  Hears restraint of trade injunctions, confidential information cases and larger employment contract disputes; other contract claims may be brought in the Magistrates Court or District Court of South Australia, depending on the amount claimed.

1. 01Identify your system

   Work out whether your employer is private enterprise (Fair Work Commission) or a South Australian public sector or local government employer (SAET). SA Water employees go to the Fair Work Commission. Both systems have a 21-day dismissal deadline.

   Typical timeframe: 1-2 days

2. 02Collect documents and diarise the deadline

   Gather your contract, payslips, termination letter, warning letters and relevant emails, and write down the date your dismissal took effect. In the Fair Work Commission, day one of the 21 days is the day after the dismissal took effect. SAET says its 21 days start on the date the dismissal takes effect. Do not leave it to the last day.

   Typical timeframe: 2-5 days

3. 03Get help

   Contact your union, the Legal Services Commission of South Australia, the Working Women's Centre SA or a lawyer. The Fair Work Commission also runs a free service through which eligible people can speak with a lawyer about a dismissal.

   Typical timeframe: First week

4. 04File the claim

   Lodge with SAET or the Fair Work Commission. There is no fee for an unfair dismissal claim in SAET. The Fair Work Commission fee is $92.70 from 1 July 2026, and you can ask for it to be waived if paying it would cause serious financial hardship. The employer then responds and may raise jurisdictional objections.

   Typical timeframe: Within 21 days of dismissal

5. 05Conciliation or directions hearing

   SAET aims to hold a conciliation conference before a Commissioner within four weeks of the claim being lodged, and the Fair Work Commission's conciliation is generally held by telephone. Many dismissal matters settle at this stage.

   Typical timeframe: SAET aims for within 4 weeks of filing

6. 06Evidence and hearing

   If the matter does not resolve, directions are issued for witness statements, documents and submissions, and the matter is listed for hearing.

   Typical timeframe: Often several months from filing

7. 07Decision, remedy and review

   The tribunal decides whether the dismissal was unfair and orders reinstatement or compensation. Review and appeal rights are time limited, so check the applicable period as soon as a decision is issued.

   Typical timeframe: Variable

South Australian employment claims are designed to be accessible. There is no fee to lodge an unfair dismissal claim or a wages claim in the South Australian Employment Tribunal, conciliation is built into the process, and costs orders in state wages claims are limited. The Fair Work Commission application fee is $92.70 from 1 July 2026 and can be waived if paying it would cause serious financial hardship. Each party in the Commission normally pays its own costs. Complaints to Equal Opportunity SA are free. In court proceedings under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth), costs can generally only be ordered against a party who acted vexatiously, without reasonable cause or unreasonably, and the small claims procedure is available for underpayment claims of $100,000 or less. The costs risk sits in ordinary court litigation: a restraint of trade injunction or contract claim in the Supreme Court or District Court of South Australia carries the usual rule that the losing party generally pays the winner's costs. Some private lawyers offer fixed fees or deferred-fee arrangements, so ask for a written costs estimate before you engage anyone.