Australia’s higher education regulator, Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA), raised the bar on workplace law compliance – requiring Vice-Chancellors of Australian universities personally attest on workplace compliance.
This marks a significant shift in accountability across the sector and sends a clear message to Australian Universities: compliance with workplace laws is now a leadership level responsibility.
We unpack what this shift signals for the sector, the growing focus on institutional accountability and the practical steps universities should be taking as part of this broader ongoing compliance and governance change.
Australia’s higher education providers rank amongst the world’s best, but it’s not the quality of their education or research that’s currently drawing the eye of national regulators.
Australia’s industrial landscape is notoriously complex, and the higher education sector is no exception. Intricate enterprise agreements and industry-specific terminology (such as associated working time) often require substantial interpretation and administrative effort to ensure compliance.
With reported underpayments affecting over 110,000 workers and totalling more than $218 million, higher education remains firmly on the Fair Work Ombudsman’s (FWO) list of priority industries – and that scrutiny is now driving significant regulatory change.
Earlier this year TEQSA published its Statement of Regulatory Expectations: Compliance with workplace obligations (Statement). In line with long standing concerns, the Statement sets a clear expectation that all registered higher education providers correctly pay their staff and comply with workplace laws and industrial agreements.
With a strong focus on governance and oversight, TEQSA now expects governing bodies to:
- obtain independent advice as necessary to identify and address potential risks under workplace laws, including wage underpayment risks arising from payroll or administrative systems;
- define, monitor and review the roles required to effectively manage and ensure compliance with workplace laws;
- assure themselves and demonstrates that the provider is operating in full compliance with workplace laws, including in payroll, record keeping and employment systems; and
- take active and ongoing responsibility for ensuring robust, fit for purpose systems are in place to prevent, detect and respond to non-compliance, with regular oversight and review.
Starting in 2025, Australian universities must now submit annual compliance reports to TEQSA. This additional requirement follows the FWOs findings that risks of non-compliance have been disproportionately concentrated within the university sector.
The FWOs 2024-2025 annual report (released in September 2025) confirmed that universities will remain a priority industry, citing “systemic non-compliance” after entering into four enforceable undertakings with university’s during the year.
Each annual report must include an attestation by the Vice-Chancellor confirming the university has met the expectations in the Statement, and an index of supporting evidence. This represents a significant shift in accountability and signals that workplace law compliance is not merely an HR or payroll function, but a fundamental component of institutional governance and sector integrity.
The shift to accountability
The heightened focus on governing body accountability across Australian universities is the result of several converging pressures:
- The Australian Universities Accord identified that regulatory and governance frameworks have been too slow to respond to critical issues, including staff employment practices, casualisation and widespread underpayment;
- FWO Investigations continue to uncover systemic underpayment trends in the university sector, with recurring themes of poor governance, inadequate oversight, fragmented HR functions and underinvestment in payroll and time-recording systems.
- Intensifying public scrutiny of university governance – from executive remuneration to the use of consultants in restructures to high levels of discretionary expenditure during periods of course closures and staff cuts.
In response, the Senate Education and Employment Legislation Committee launched an inquiry into the quality of governance at Australian higher education providers. The inquiry examines transparency in decision-making, the remuneration of vice chancellors and senior executives and whether TEQSA’s regulatory powers are adequate.
While the inquiry is ongoing, TEQSA has moved proactively by publishing and now requiring universities to report against the Statement.
The significance of the Statement
Beyond registering providers and accrediting courses, TEQSA is responsible for monitoring and assessing compliance with the Higher Education Standards Framework (Threshold Standards) 2021 (Framework).
The Framework sets minimum operational and governance standards that all higher education providers must meet, including that governing bodies are accountable for institutional compliance with legislative and regulatory obligations.
A Statement of Regulatory Expectations (SRE) is one of TEQSA’s key regulatory tools. It is used to address systemic or emerging risks and to signal areas where TEQSA expects heightened compliance efforts. Failure to meet the expectations in an SRE may indicate that a provider is at risk of breaching the Framework – prompting TEQSA to initiate further compliance assessment or investigation. Where non-compliance is identified, TEQSA has a broad suite of enforcement options, including:
- requiring enforceable undertakings;
- imposing conditions on registration or accreditation;
- shortening registration or accreditation periods;
- cancelling registration; or
- applying for civil or criminal sanctions.
Importantly, TEQSA publishes its compliance and enforcement decisions on the National Register, meaning non-compliance is unlikely to be discrete.
Preparing to report against the Statement
Although TEQSA has not yet released detailed guidance on the precise “evidence” required, governing bodies must ensure they are already complying – or making demonstrable progress toward compliance – with the expectations laid out in the Statement.
This includes confirming that:
- appropriate advice has been sought on risks associated with workplace law obligations;
- governance mechanisms are in place that meet the detailed requirements of the Statement; and
- the institution has considered how it will demonstrate compliance in a clear and auditable manner.
Universities must also keep pace with broader legal developments. For example, the Federal Court’s recent decision in the Woolworths underpayment case has significant implications for how employers should approach record keeping, payroll accuracy and risk management.
Successfully navigating change
The Statement is just one of several major regulatory and industrial developments reshaping the higher education sector. Each introduces new layers of complexity to core university operations – at a time when institutions face increasing pressure to reduce expenditure on external advisors and consultants.
To balance these competing demands, universities will need to partner selectively with organisations capable of supporting compliance efficiently, sustainably and with minimal disruption to daily operations. In an environment of heightened scrutiny and rapidly evolving expectations, the right expert support is no longer optional – it is essential.
With TEQSA’s new reporting expectations now in effect, understanding how to comply – and how these reforms intersect with other sector wide changes – has never been more important for ensuring your institution is prepared.
At Source, we work closely with Australian universities to navigate workplace law compliance address underpayment risks and strengthen governance and assurance frameworks. We are partnered with several universities working towards achieving compliance across the broader sector wide reforms.
If you require assistance or would like guidance on how to meet the regulatory expectations in the Statement, or want to better understand how these reforms interact with other emerging changes in the sector, reach out – we’re here to help.
