$1.9b in super was lost, here’s how to get it back

Australian workers are losing a staggering $110 million in superannuation every week as employers fail to meet their obligations, shocking new data reveals.

Employees across NSW were shortchanged an average of $1760 in superannuation.

More than a million workers across NSW have had their super underpaid by their employer, with new research confirming $1.9bn in lost retirement savings in a single year.

Despite billions in unpaid superannuation, the tax office is still recovering only a fraction of what’s owed, leaving employees to fight for their own retirement savings while payday super laws languish on the federal government’s to-do list.

New analysis of Australian Taxation Office (ATO) data by the Super Members Council found employees across NSW were shortchanged an average of $1760 in superannuation, with a cumulative $9.9bn lost in the six years to 2023.

The data also uncovered the federal electorate of Sydney consistently having the highest number of unpaid super, with a total of $335m, followed by Kingsford Smith with $258.7m and Werriwa with $235.1m.

Super Members Council chief executive Misha Schubert told The Daily Telegraph struggling families “can’t afford further delays to payday super laws”.

“Millions of everyday Australians are losing $110m a week in retirement savings,” Ms Schubert said.

“The average worker in NSW could be short-changed more than $30,000 from their final retirement nest egg if unpaid super isn’t fixed urgently.”

Misha Schubert, Chief Executive Super Members Council. Picture: Supplied

Employees are being urged to check with their super fund, and contact the ATO if superannuation is being paid incorrectly.

However, the ATO was only able to recover just 17 per cent, or less than $1bn, of the $4.7bn in unpaid superannuation in 2020-21, according to tax office data.

An ATO spokeswoman told The Daily Telegraph the office could not comment on the data, but that it took “non-compliance with super guarantee obligations seriously”.

“Our action against employers who aren’t complying with super guarantee obligations helps to protect employee’s superannuation and ensure a level playing field for all businesses,” she said.

“Where it is determined that an employer owes superannuation guarantee amounts, the ATO pursues the outstanding debt and applies a full range of firmer actions including director penalty notices, garnishees, directions to pay, disclosure of business tax debt and prosecution actions to ensure payment on superannuation debts.”

The spokeswoman said the ATO aimed to collect unpaid debt owed by an employer as soon as possible, “but some employers may not be able to pay in full”.

“Employers who need additional time to make payments may be able to enter an agreed payment plan with the ATO,” she said.

“There are situations where it can be harder for the ATO to recover unpaid superannuation including if an employer is bankrupt, in liquidation, under administration or deregistered.

“Where businesses continue to trade without addressing their super guarantee charge debts, we will escalate our actions towards wind up and bankruptcy where it’s appropriate. The ATO may also seek to recover unpaid (super guarantee) from current and former directors.”

Originally published as $1.9b in super was lost, here’s how to get it back