How to Find and Read Your Enterprise Agreement (2026)

First, check whether you're on an enterprise agreement at all. The quickest signals: your payslip or contract names an "agreement" rather than just an award; your classification uses the employer's own level names; or you work for a large employer (most major supermarkets, hardware and fast-food chains run agreements). If none of that applies, you're most likely on the relevant modern award.

Every approved enterprise agreement is public. Go to the Fair Work Commission's Find an Enterprise Agreement database and search by your employer's name. You'll get the full approved agreement as a PDF, plus the decision approving it. If you're a union member, your union usually publishes the same agreement with a plain-English summary.

Inside the agreement, find your classification level (the agreement defines what each level covers), then read across to your base hourly rate. Then check the schedules for penalty rates (weekends, evenings, public holidays), casual loading, allowances and overtime. Agreements often fold some of these into the base rate, so read how your "all-up" rate is built.

Compare the agreement's rates to the award floor — the agreement should leave you better off overall. Check the agreement's nominal expiry date: if it has passed, the agreement still applies, but your pay may be due for renegotiation. Our pay rate tools give you the current award baseline to compare against.

If your actual pay is below what the agreement (or award) requires, that's an underpayment, and you can recover it — generally going back up to six years. Document your hours and payslips, raise it with your employer in writing, and if it isn't fixed, the Fair Work Ombudsman can help. Start by running the numbers through our underpayment checker and back pay calculator.