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Small business employers
Last updated July 2025
This chapter explains when employer obligations differ for small businesses and what you need to do to comply with them.
What is a small business employer?
For the purposes of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (FW Act), a small business employer is a national system employer that employs fewer than 15 employees at a particular time.
Tip: When calculating how many employees you have at a particular time:
- exclude casual employees unless, at that time, the employee is a regular casual employee, i.e. employed on a regular and systematic basis;
- include employees employed by associated entities; and
- include any employees who are being dismissed.
- exclude casual employees unless, at that time, the employee is a regular casual employee, i.e. employed on a regular and systematic basis;
- include employees employed by associated entities; and
- include any employees who are being dismissed.
The legal rights and obligations of small business employers differ from those of other employers in relation to:
- unfair dismissal (read more);
- casual employees (read more);
- redundancy pay (read more);
- flexible work arrangements (read more);
- workers’ compensation (read more);
- rights to representation in Fair Work Commission (FWC) proceedings (read more);
- gender equality reporting (read more); and
- anti-discrimination for some partnerships (read more).