1 in 4 Aussies Aren’t Getting Paid Their Super, Are You One of Them?

By Molly Benjamin, Founder of Ladies Finance Club

Listen to the full podcast here.

Let’s be honest for a second. How often do you actually log into your superannuation account? If the answer is “sometime last year” or “I’m not even sure I have the app,” you are absolutely not alone. This week on Get Rich, I sat down with Misha Shubert, CEO of the Super Members Council, to talk about everything you need to know about super right now and the conversation was genuinely eye-opening.

I’ll be the first to admit I wasn’t always on top of this. When I first started my corporate career, I used to throw my super fund letters straight in the bin without even opening them. I genuinely thought super was the company’s money, not mine. Fast forward to today, and after making consistent small changes and educating myself, I’ve grown my balance from $20,000 to $180,000 without ever earning a massive salary. If that’s not proof that starting matters more than starting big, I don’t know what is.

The Stat That Stopped Me in My Tracks

Here’s the number that genuinely shocked me mid-conversation: one in four working Australians are currently not being paid some or all of the superannuation they’ve earned. That’s 3.3 million people, collectively missing out on nearly $6 billion a year. And the truly alarming part? Most of them have no idea it’s happening.

The reason this goes undetected so easily comes down to the current payment rules. Under existing law, employers have up to three months, once a quarter, to pay the super they owe you. Meanwhile, you’re probably checking that little SGC line on your payslip and assuming everything is fine. But seeing it listed on your payslip and actually having it land in your super fund account are two very different things. Whole companies have gone under between payslip and payment, leaving workers with years’ worth of super simply gone.

Payday Super Laws Are Coming, Here’s What That Means for You

The good news is that change is finally on the way. From 1 July 2026, new payday super laws will require employers to pay your super at the same time as your take-home wages, every single time. No more quarterly delays. No more wondering if it’s been paid. Your super will hit your account when your salary does.

And even if you’re already being paid correctly, this change will still benefit you. Misha explained that just having your super land in your account slightly earlier, and therefore get invested sooner could be worth an estimated $7,500 more by the time you retire. Compound interest really is the closest thing to magic in the world of retirement planning.

What to Do If You’ve Been Short-Changed

First things first: go and check. Log into your super fund app or online account and look at what’s actually been deposited. The current superannuation guarantee rate is 12%, so grab your payslip and do the maths. Is 12% of your gross wage actually sitting in your account for each pay period?

If something looks off, you have options. You can raise it directly with your employer first to try to get a quick resolution. If that doesn’t go anywhere, you can lodge a complaint with the Australian Tax Office, who have the power to investigate and recover what you’re owed. Your own super fund may also be able to help chase down unpaid contributions on your behalf. The key is not to sit on it. The sooner you flag it, the easier it is to resolve.

Lost Super, Multiple Accounts and Other Sneaky Drains on Your Balance

If you’ve had a few different jobs over the years, retail work at uni, a stint in hospo, that part-time gig you’ve half forgotten, there’s a reasonable chance you’ve got small pockets of super scattered across multiple accounts. Each one is quietly charging you fees, which is essentially your own money being eaten away for no reason.

I always say: if you were walking down the street and saw $1,000 with your name on it, you’d pick it up. Lost super is exactly that. Head to the ATO’s website where there’s a dedicated lost and unclaimed super tool, and once you’ve found all your accounts, consider consolidating everything into one super fund so you’re only paying a single set of fees and maximising those compounding returns.

The Super Scam Epidemic You Need to Know About

This part of my conversation with Misha was genuinely alarming. She flagged a massive rise in super scams operating through social media, often appearing as ads offering a “free super health check” or promising to help you move out of an “underperforming” fund. The pattern is disturbingly effective: someone clicks the link, gets a follow-up phone call, and is slowly talked into switching their savings into a riskier, higher-fee structure or outright fraudulent fund.

Twelve thousand Australians lost their entire super through the Shield and First Guardian collapses, a combined $1 billion wiped out. ASIC has issued repeated public warnings, and the message is simple: if you get a cold call about your super, hang up. If an ad promises to double or triple your returns, that is a red flag, not an opportunity. Legitimate super funds management doesn’t work that way.

My blanket rule, which I think everyone should adopt: if anyone calls you asking you to move money anywhere, it’s 99.9% a scam. And be especially aware of high-pressure tactics designed to create urgency, things like “you need to make this decision today.” That urgency is manufactured specifically to stop you from seeking trusted financial advice or doing your own research. With AI-generated video now being used to mimic real people and build false trust, the scams are only getting more sophisticated.

A Word to the Women Who’ve Taken Time Out of the Workforce

If you’ve spent time out of paid work caring for children, ageing parents, or family members, you are doing some of the most important work in society and you shouldn’t be financially penalised for it. But the reality right now is that Australian women retire with about a quarter less super than men, and that genuinely concerns me.

One significant recent win is the government’s decision to pay super on paid parental leave, which will make a real difference during the decade when many women step back from full-time work. There are also catch-up contribution rules that allow you to make additional super contributions if you’ve had a lower-income period, it’s absolutely worth talking directly to your super fund about whether this is something you could take advantage of.

And to any young women working part-time in hospitality or retail: the current rules mean that if you’re under 18 and work fewer than 30 hours per week, you may not be legally entitled to super at all. It’s an inequity that is being challenged, but for now, knowing about it is the first step.

Self-Managed Super Funds: Who Are They Actually For?

With so much noise on social media pushing people towards self-managed super funds (SMSFs), I wanted to dig into this with Misha. The reality is that SMSFs come with significant ongoing costs, often thousands of dollars a year in accounting, admin and advice fees, and when you set one up, you become the legal trustee, meaning the responsibility (and the risk) sits entirely with you.

The head of the SMSF Association himself has suggested you need at least $200,000 to justify the fees. Many of the financial advisers I’ve worked with put that figure closer to $1 million. For most Australians, the mainstream super system, with its low fees, strong returns, professional investment teams and robust consumer protections, is doing a genuinely excellent job. The push towards SMSFs often benefits someone other than the person being pushed.

Your One Super Homework Task This Week

When I asked Misha for her single most important super tip, the answer was beautifully simple: check that you’ve actually been paid the super you’ve earned. Log in, look at the numbers, and make sure 12% of your wage is showing up in your account consistently. That one action could save you thousands.

While you’re in there, take a look at whether you’re in the right investment option for your age and circumstances. Most people who didn’t actively choose their fund are sitting in a default option that might not be the best fit for where they’re at in life. Your super fund’s helpline is free to call, the people there are legally required to act in your interest, and they genuinely want to help.

Superannuation doesn’t have to be complicated. At its core, it’s money you’re setting aside now so that future you has a paycheck in retirement. The more attention you give it today – even just checking in every month or so, the harder it works for you over time.

As Misha said: look after your super, and it will look after you.

Nobody ever gets to retirement and wishes they had less. So do yourself a favour, open the app, and check your super this week. I promise you won’t regret it.

Listen to the full episode wherever you get your podcasts, and if you’re looking for a trusted financial expert to help put any of this into action, check out the new Ladies Finance Club Directory.