The Schedule That Caps Your Back Wages
You heard back wages have a ceiling and want to know where it comes from.
The Second Schedule of the Industrial Relations Act 1967 is where the back wages cap comes from. Most people hear the number without hearing where it is written.
What does the Second Schedule do?
It limits how far back an award of back wages can reach. The period runs from your dismissal date to the last day of your hearing, however long the case itself takes.
What limits does it set?
The cap is 24 months for a confirmed employee and 12 months for a probationer, counted over that same period.1
Your status on the day you were dismissed, confirmed or on probation, decides which limit applies to you.
Why does it matter beyond the headline number?
The schedule sets a ceiling, not a promised sum. The final figure is worked out from your last-drawn salary.
Earnings from other work during that window can also be deducted, which can bring the real figure below the maximum.2
Take a confirmed employee whose hearing ends 30 months after dismissal. The calculation still reaches back only 24 months, so the extra six months add nothing.
How does it fit with the rest of your claim?
The schedule only covers back wages. Whether you get your job back is a separate remedy under reinstatement.
For how the cap fits into the wider calculation an Industrial Court makes, read about back wages and compensation.
What should you check first?
Check whether you were confirmed or on probation on your dismissal date, since that one fact decides which cap applies.
Your confirmation letter or payslips usually show which status you held, so keep copies of both.
Then check your filing window on the deadline calculator. None of this matters until a claim is lodged in time.
If you are claiming back wages, an independent employment lawyer can check whether you were confirmed or on probation and how the cap affects your claim. They can handle it if you have grounds.
For people seeking legal representation. For general information, please use our guides and tools.
First contact: general facts only, such as date, location, employment status and a short summary. Keep documents private until an identified independent lawyer contacts you and specifically requests them.
Common questions
Does the Second Schedule set my exact payout figure?
No. It only sets the outer time limit the calculation can cover. Your actual figure still depends on your last-drawn salary and how long your case takes.
Why does a probationer get a shorter cap than a confirmed employee?
The law treats the two differently in this schedule, with confirmed staff capped at a longer period. Confirming your own status is a useful first step.
Does this cap apply to reinstatement too?
No. Reinstatement is a separate remedy, getting your job back. This schedule specifically limits the back-wages calculation, not whether you are reinstated.
Can money I earned elsewhere after dismissal reduce this figure?
Yes. Earnings from other work during that period can be deducted from the calculation, so the final figure is rarely the maximum on its own.
Sources
- Back wages awarded by the Industrial Court are assessed from the date of dismissal to the last day of hearing, capped at 24 months for a confirmed employee and 12 months for a probationer, under the Second Schedule of the Industrial Relations Act 1967. DNH, Monetary Remedies at the Industrial Court
- Earnings a dismissed employee received from other work after dismissal may be deducted when the Industrial Court calculates back wages. DNH, Monetary Remedies at the Industrial Court
Keep reading
If you are claiming back wages, an independent employment lawyer can check whether you were confirmed or on probation and how the cap affects your claim. They can handle it if you have grounds.
For people seeking legal representation. For general information, please use our guides and tools.
First contact: general facts only, such as date, location, employment status and a short summary. Keep documents private until an identified independent lawyer contacts you and specifically requests them.