New modelling showed under-18 super rules widened the gender gap and cut young women’s retirement savings.
The Super Members Council moved to abolish the rule that denies most under-18 workers compulsory super, saying new analysis showed it entrenched gender inequality and could cost young women up to $11,000 by retirement.
Under the current law, teenagers are only guaranteed super if they work more than 30 hours a week for one employer, a threshold the Council said no longer made sense given today’s protections for low-balance accounts.
Support for reform appeared strong, with a Pyxis survey showing 73 per cent of Australians backed scrapping the age-based exemption, while just 7 per cent opposed it.
The Council said the rule disproportionately harmed teenage girls, who are more likely to work part-time in retail and community service roles and therefore miss out on contributions, even though women retire with 25 per cent less super than men.
Its report showed a typical teenage girl could accumulate nearly $2,500 more by age 18 if guaranteed super, an amount projected to grow into an extra $11,000 by retirement due to compounding investment returns.
The analysis also found that while girls make up 55 per cent of the under-18 workforce, they represent only 35 per cent of those currently guaranteed super under the 30-hour rule.
Teenage boys, more likely to work in trades or labouring jobs with full-time hours or apprenticeships, were more often eligible for contributions from day one.
The Council estimated that removing the minimum-hours rule would mean about 515,000 young Australians in 2025–26 would begin earning super immediately.
It said the reform should build on recent government moves aimed at narrowing the gender gap, including super on Commonwealth Parental Leave Pay, payday super commencing 1 July 2026 and a pledge to increase the Low-Income Super Tax Offset.
“It’s simply not fair that young women today are missing out on thousands of dollars in retirement savings because of this outdated rule. The super gap starts from day one of men and women’s working lives – and that needs to be fixed now,” said Super Members Council CEO Misha Schubert.
“Ensuring all under-18 workers are paid super will be another big stride forward to help close the gender gap and guarantee every young Australian a super start to work.”
Rest, one of Australia’s largest profit-to-member funds, separately backed the push and released its own modelling showing universal super for under-18s could meaningfully lift early balances for both girls and boys.
Rest’s analysis found a typical male teenage worker could gain $2,000 by age 18 and $9,000 by retirement if super were paid universally, complementing the Council’s projected benefits for girls.
Rest chief member officer Simone Van Veen said the findings confirmed the need for change, noting young women were less likely to work more than 30 hours per week and typically had smaller monthly contributions than male members of the same age.
She said female Rest members nearing retirement in their 60s faced a gender super gap of 27 per cent, highlighting how early disparities compounded over a lifetime.
Rest research also showed overwhelming member support for extending super to all under-18 workers, with 98 per cent of surveyed members saying super should apply to all working Australians regardless of hours worked, and 71 per cent backing mandatory super for teenagers.
“We represent more than 1 million young members under the age of 30, many who work in part-time and casual roles. Every worker under the age of 18 deserves to earn super and receive the benefit of compounding returns no matter how many hours they work,” Van Veen said.
Rest urged the government to commit to reform and implement it through staged consultation to manage employer impacts.
