Employee cost calculator

What's included

• Pay: their salary, or their hourly rate times their hours.
• Super: the Super Guarantee of 12% of their ordinary pay, up to the ATO's maximum.
• Leave loading: 17.5% on four weeks of annual leave, if their award or agreement includes it.
• Payroll tax: this role's share of your payroll tax, once your total wages pass your state's threshold. It counts super as wages, the way the revenue offices do.
• Workers compensation: your premium rate, from your policy renewal.
• Other costs: equipment, software, training and recruitment, spread over the year.

How hours worked are counted

A full-time employee is paid for 52 weeks a year, but works fewer. The calculator takes out four weeks of annual leave, ten days of personal and carer's leave, and the public holidays that fall on their working days. That's why the cost per hour worked is well above their hourly pay. For part-time staff, the leave is in proportion to their hours. Personal leave is counted as if it's all taken, which is the safe way to plan; if your team rarely takes it, their real cost per hour will be a little lower.

Casual or permanent

Casual employees are paid a 25% loading in place of paid leave and public holidays, so they're paid only for the hours they work. They often cost more per hour on paper and about the same per hour worked. Permanent staff cost less per paid hour but bring paid leave, and the steadiness that comes with it.

Using the cost per hour to price your work

If you charge for your team's time, the cost per hour worked is your floor. Your price has to cover it, plus the hours nobody can bill, plus your margin. Put it into the margin and markup calculator to see what to charge. Run it for each role you're thinking of hiring, then compare the cost with the extra work you'd need to win to cover it. That number tells you how many more customers the hire needs before it pays for itself.