National Australia Bank has acknowledged that almost 66,000 current and former employees were underpaid over a period spanning 14 years.
The Big Four lender has repaid most of the $169 million owed to staff, including interest and superannuation.
According to the Fair Work Ombudsman, employees across every Australian state and territory were affected, with some underpayments continuing as recently as this year. The problems dated back to 2012.
The affected workers included casual, part-time and full-time employees across a wide range of personal and business banking positions.
While the average repayment was $1,934, one employee was found to be owed more than $87,000.
NAB first reported the underpayments to the Fair Work Ombudsman in late 2019, after discovering significant errors in the implementation of its then-current enterprise agreement.
That disclosure led to a wide-ranging review of employee entitlements, which uncovered compliance failures dating back to 2012.
A further review conducted in 2024 showed that employees were still being underpaid because the problems had not been fully resolved.
NAB has repaid at least $155 million to affected current and former employees
The causes included weaknesses in governance and compliance oversight, poor record-keeping, outdated payroll technology and insufficient investment in payroll expertise.
NAB has so far repaid at least $155 million. That figure includes more than $120 million in unpaid wages and entitlements, $25 million in interest and more than $8 million in applicable superannuation.
The bank has signed an enforceable undertaking with the Fair Work Ombudsman to supervise the repayment process.
It will also pay $2 million in contrition to the Commonwealth Consolidated Revenue Fund — the largest amount ever included in an executed enforceable undertaking.
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‘NAB’s underpayment failures demonstrate the serious and persistent problems that can occur when an employer does not properly coordinate essential functions, including payroll, industrial relations, technology, risk management, auditing and legal compliance,’ Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth said.
‘It is particularly disappointing to see such extensive and long-running underpayments at an employer with significant resources, especially one that negotiated its own legally binding enterprise agreement but failed to ensure compliant payroll systems were ready to apply those terms before they took effect.’
Ms Booth welcomed NAB’s extensive remediation work and the reviews it carried out over several years.
‘The enforceable undertaking provides for comprehensive remediation, including periods well beyond the statutory limits, while also strengthening accountability and supporting ongoing compliance in the future,’ Ms Booth said.
‘It is particularly disappointing to see such extensive and long-running underpayments at an employer with significant resources,’ Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth said
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NAB said it regretted the errors and was upgrading its employee systems and payroll platforms.
‘We take our payroll responsibilities extremely seriously because they are a fundamental part of employing people. We sincerely apologise for these unintended errors,’ NAB group executive of people and culture Sarah White said.
‘We have taken action and will continue to ensure that anyone affected is remediated.’
The disclosure came on the same day Commonwealth Bank was accused of overcharging tens of thousands of customers by millions of dollars through fees.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission, the corporate financial services regulator, alleges that 42,000 CommBiz customers were overcharged approximately $8.5 million in fees between November 2020 and May 31, 2025.
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