What is a Better Off Overall Test?

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Paying a salary or flat rate doesn't automatically mean your business is Award compliant. A BOOT helps determine whether your pay arrangements stack up.

July 6, 2026
2:46 am

You may have heard us reference a BOOT before when talking about salaries, flat rates and Award compliance. It’s a term that’s appearing more frequently in Fair Work decisions and discussions around payroll compliance, yet many employers aren’t sure what it actually means or why it matters.

What is a BOOT?

BOOT stands for the Better Off Overall Test.

It’s an assessment used to determine whether a salary, flat hourly rate or other pay arrangement continues to compensate an employee for the Award entitlements they would otherwise receive.

Think of it as a compliance check for your pay arrangements.

How Does a BOOT Work?

While every assessment is different, a BOOT generally involves:

Identifying the employee’s correct Modern Award and classification.
Reviewing how the employee actually works, including ordinary hours, overtime, weekends, public holidays and allowances.
Calculating what the employee would receive under the Award.
Comparing that figure against what the employee is actually paid.

Simply put, a BOOT is a compliance test used to compare what an employee is actually paid, against what they would have been entitled to receive under their applicable Modern Award.

Its purpose is to determine whether an employee is better off overall under their current pay arrangement. If the employee is better off overall, the arrangement may satisfy the BOOT. If they aren’t, the pay arrangement may need to be adjusted.

Why Are Employers Talking About BOOT More Often?

Recent Federal Court decisions have increased the focus on BOOTs and payroll compliance.

Rather than looking at whether employees are better off across an entire year, greater emphasis is now being placed on whether employees are appropriately compensated during each individual pay period.

For businesses paying salaries or flat rates, this has highlighted the importance of regularly reviewing payroll arrangements rather than assuming they remain compliant over time.

How ProcessWorxAg Conducts a BOOT

When ProcessWorxAg completes a BOOT, we don’t simply compare pay rates, we:

Identify the correct Award and employee classification.
Review how the employee actually works.
Assess overtime, penalties, allowances and other Award entitlements.
Compare those entitlements against what the employee is actually paid.
Identify any shortfalls and provide recommendations where adjustments may be required.

The goal is to help employers understand whether their current pay arrangements remain compliant and identify any potential underpayment risks before they become larger issues.