26 September 2025

Is 12% Superannuation enough?

In July, the Superannuation Guarantee (SG) finally reached 12%. That’s the end of the legislated increases — but is it enough?

For those who own their home outright, modelling suggests 12% will typically secure a comfortable retirement. But for the growing number of Australians who will still be renting or paying off a mortgage at retirement, the story is very different.

• Currently two-thirds of retirees who rent are living in poverty (Grattan Institute).

• For single women, that figure rises to three-quarters.

• A retiree paying $330/week in rent (cheaper than 80% of one-bedroom units across capital cities) would need an extra $200,000 in super just to cover rent during retirement — and that's on top of Commonwealth Rent Assistance.

Clearly, 12% isn’t enough on its own for everyone.

💡 So what can employers do?

• Consider offering contributions above SG (e.g. 13–15%), particularly for mid-to-late career employees.

• Introduce matching (e.g. match the first 1% of employee salary sacrifice contributions) to increase the take-up of salary sacrifice options.

• Most importantly — communicate the value of superannuation and its insurances (death/TPD, salary continuance) as part of your remuneration package.

• Make superannuation visible, valued, and part of the financial wellbeing story you tell your people.

👉 The retirement adequacy conversation shouldn’t stop at the legislated minimum. Employers have an opportunity to step up — helping ensure their people retire with dignity, whether they rent, own, or still carry a mortgage.

🔎 Where does superannuation fit within your EVP?  How well do your employees understand the value of this universal employee benefit?  What is your organisation doing to help nudge people to make good financial decisions early in their careers that will help them achieve a comfortable retirement?

12 February 2025

"Small improvements made consistently over time lead to stunning results." – Robin Sharma

The annual remuneration review isn’t just a process—it’s an opportunity to refine, improve, and drive better outcomes year after year. Every review offers valuable lessons that can help streamline decision-making, enhance fairness, and build greater trust across your business.

Some key areas to focus on for a smoother, more effective review include:

✅ Aligning stakeholders early with a clear plan and strategy
✅ Validating data upfront and thoroughly testing your systems
✅ Enhancing benchmarking data and ensuring it’s used effectively
✅ Strengthening the remuneration budget with solid data and targeted allocation
✅ Defining better criteria for recommendations and providing leaders with clear guidance
✅ Addressing pay equity issues proactively to uphold WGEA commitments
✅ Building in time for executive review and calibration to ensure fair outcomes
✅ Educating leaders on remuneration principles so they can confidently own and communicate outcomes
✅ Improving employee communication to foster trust and understanding
✅ Capturing employee satisfaction to assess the effectiveness of the review
✅ Ensuring payroll has ample time to validate and process changes accurately

If your company operates on a June financial year, now is the time to gear up and set the stage for success! Don’t let last year’s challenges repeat—commit to continuous improvement and make this year’s review your best yet.

Take a moment to revisit last year’s post-implementation review (PIR) or, if you haven’t done one, set clear improvement goals now. As the saying goes, fail to plan, and you plan to fail!

If you’d like to chat about how to tackle your biggest challenges, I’d love to help! With 25+ years of hands-on experience leading remuneration processes across ASX-listed and private organisations—both in Australia and globally—I bring practical insights that can make a real difference.

📩 Let’s connect and make this year’s review a success!