Big change to superannuation is floated for teenage workers - as Jim Chalmers considers an under-18 overhaul

By NICHOLAS COMINO, POLITICAL REPORTER, AUSTRALIA Published: 04:08, 30 June 2026 | Updated: 04:20, 30 June 2026 Treasurer Jim Chalmers has suggested he is open to discussing expanding superannuation to include teenagers after a campaign by the Greens. The Albanese government's 'Payday Super' reforms start on July 1 and will require employers to pay super contributions at the same time as wages rather than quarterly. It means businesses must contribute 12 per cent of eligible workers' earnings into super accounts under the Superannuation Guarantee. Under current rules, workers under 18 only qualify for superannuation if they work more than 30 hours a week regardless of their income. But the Greens want the threshold scrapped entirely so all workers under 18 receive superannuation regardless of the hours they work. On the eve of the reforms, Chalmers said the government was 'engaging' with proposals to extend coverage but stopped short of backing the change. 'We didn't need the Greens political party to tell us that this was an important issue,' he told Sky News. 'As it turns out, I met with a delegation of young workers just last week talking about this.' Jim Chalmers (pictured) upporting the Greens' calls for expanding teens' access to a super Chalmers said the government was open to broader reforms but downplayed the proposal as an immediate priority. 'The point that I'm making... is that we're engaging on all these sorts of issues. We're always looking for ways to improve the system,' he said. 'But for us, the big priority right now is the major change that comes in tomorrow.' The Albanese government says its reforms will prevent underpayment and significantly boost retirement balances, particularly for low‑paid and younger workers. However the Greens challenged Labor's decision to retain the under-18 threshold, moving a partial disallowance in the Senate to remove the 30-hour rule. The motion is expected to be debated and put to a vote this week. Greens workplace relations spokesperson Senator Barbara Pocock said the existing system excludes the majority of young workers, many of whom juggle jobs with school or study. 'The kids are not alright. The cost of everything has gone up but wages haven't kept up with inflation,' she said on Tuesday. Greens workplace relations spokesperson Barbara Pocock (pictured left with Greens senators Larissa Waters and Nick McKim) says the exclusion of teen super costs workers $405million  'Labor knows how hard it is for young people and yet they choose to prevent young people from accessing the money they've earned.' Senator Pocock said the exclusion would deny hundreds of thousands of teenagers retirement savings.  'This is the deliberate exclusion of super for young people, robbing 515,000 young workers of an estimated $405million in super contributions in 2025-26 alone,' she said. She argued the 30-hour threshold unfairly penalises students, with most unable to meet the requirement due to study commitments. 'The majority of young people, 93 per cent, work fewer than 30 hours a week because of school and study commitments, meaning they miss out on super. That's unfair,' she said. Pocock said younger workers perform the same roles as adults and should receive equal entitlements. 'A 16‑year‑old stacking shelves at Coles or Woolworths or flipping burgers at McDonald's earns every dollar of their wage the same way an adult worker does. Their labour has value,' she said. 'Whether they're 16 or 60 years old, every worker deserves super.' The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.