Your Guide to the Payroll Remediation Program

Still underpaying your staff? The Fair Work Ombudsman’s coming for you.

If you’ve been putting off that deep dive into your payroll systems, this is your wake-up call.

The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) has just dropped its updated Payroll Remediation Program (PRP) Guide—and it’s made one thing crystal clear:

👉 If you’ve underpaid your people, fix it. Properly. And now.

This isn’t just about doing the right thing (though that should be enough). It’s about protecting your business from serious fines, reputational damage, and the mess that comes with being audited—or worse, dragged through the media for wage theft.

Why this matters for every business

We get it. Award interpretation is complex. You’re trying to run a business, manage your team, and grow—not become an expert in Modern Awards, payroll systems, or backpay calculations.

But that’s exactly how underpayments happen.

Over the last few years, we’ve seen household names cop it—big retailers, hospo groups, even universities. Some were deliberate. Most were sloppy. Either way, the FWO’s not mucking around anymore. They’re watching. And they’re inviting businesses to come clean and fix issues before they launch enforcement action.

So, what is the Payroll Remediation Program?

The PRP is the FWO’s blueprint for businesses who:

• Discover they’ve underpaid staff (either through audits or employee complaints)
• Want to proactively make it right
• Need help navigating the maze of award compliance and record-keeping

It’s a step-by-step guide for running a remediation program that’s:

• Employee-focused
• Transparent
• Backed by solid methodology and governance
• Designed to fix current issues and prevent future ones

But let’s be real: this thing is dense. It’s 40+ pages of compliance detail. And if you’re a time-poor business owner or leader, you might need a translation. That’s where we come in.

What’s causing all these underpayments?

Short answer: Awards are hard. But ignorance won’t fly anymore.

Here are some of the common mistakes we see:

• Misinterpreting classifications or pay entitlements under Modern Awards
• Assuming salaried staff are always better off (spoiler: they’re often not)
• Forgetting about things like overtime, penalties, allowances, or loadings
• Relying on dodgy payroll systems or poor record keeping
• Not reviewing your processes when awards change (which they do, often)

The cost of getting it wrong

Aside from the obvious—backpay, penalties, public naming and shaming—there’s a bigger issue here:

Trust.

When your people find out you’ve underpaid them (even unintentionally), that trust erodes. It impacts morale, retention, and your reputation as an employer. And rebuilding it takes way longer than running a proper payroll audit.

Our take? Don’t wait for a knock on the door.

The smartest move you can make is to:

1. Understand what award(s) apply to your business
2. Audit your current payroll setup
3. Seek expert advice if you’re not 100% sure

If you do find underpayments, don’t panic—but don’t DIY either. The FWO guide is there to help, but it’s heavy. You’ll need good data, smart methodology, and the right people around the table to make it right.

Our hot take

Compliance isn’t optional. But it doesn’t have to be overwhelming either.

At HR Gurus, we’ve helped heaps of businesses navigate payroll audits, fix underpayments, and put systems in place to stay compliant. We speak fluent Award, and we cut the jargon. So if this guide has you sweating, we’ve got you.

Let’s make things right—for your people, and for your peace of mind.

Need a payroll health check?
We can help you untangle your obligations, run a proper audit, and sort out a remediation plan that’s FWO-compliant and people-first.

Get in touch and let’s humanise this process.