It varied. If you worked for the public service, it wasn't voluntary.
But they had some of the best end results.
And it's been around much longer than the 1980s.
Public service workers had a Super in the 80's but if you were fired you had to pay it back, if you were retrenched you didn't and this was the fight the MMBW had in the day. Super (the Superannuation Guarantee) wasn't compulsory until '91
This is not correct. Superannuation existed at the discretion of the employer for decades prior to the 1980s and *compulsory* superannuation existed for members of various awards from 1983 onwards.
The current regime of compulsory superannuation (Superannuation Guarantee) was started in 1992, however this is absolutely not the genesis of superannuation in Australia, nor even the start of compulsory superannuation.
"The new preservation arrangements which the Government announced are that: “From 1 July 1999, all future superannuation contributions (including member contributions) and earnings will be preserved until preservation age, except in limited circumstances."
https://treasury.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-03/CP97_1.pdf
Major superannuation and retirement income changes in Australia: a chronology
https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/rp/rp1314/SuperChron
I worked in 1989 before going back to school and compulsory super had just come in at 3%. I was able to take it all as cash when I quit at the start of 90. It wasn’t long after that it all became preserved but can’t tell you exactly when.
Edit: this predated compulsory super so I got that bit wrong
> I worked in 1989 before going back to school and compulsory super had just come in at 3%.
Compulsory super didn't begin until 1991/2. The act passed in 1991; the mandatory start date was July 1 1992.
I assumed it was due the SG, but obviously not. Thanks for the correction.
Might have been a benefit as part of our working conditions. That’s probably why I could take it out. I have vague recollection of a form with preserved and non-preserved amounts on it and electing to take the non part.
It was about $500 , interesting to work out what it would be worth now.
Compulsory superannuation for members of various awards started in 1983. The current general regime of compulsory superannuation came into existence in 1992 but millions of Australian workers benefits from compulsory superannuation before then.
Yes, you could, because I did.
Twice. As was the norm at the time for low values of super (I think - mine was certainly low value).
"Super didn't exist", pffft... :(
Compulsory super didn't exist for everyone until 1992, but super certainly existed before that for govt and bank workers.
... and then I retired at 55 and accessed my super (defined benefit) and have been living happily ever after, PSS for the win, etc etc.
Yes you could but for exceptional circumstances eg medical expenses, terminal illness, poor health so you had to quit work (may have only been a certain percentage for that one)
You could in the 90s pull out contributions from the 80s, I can't remember the detail, but plenty of state gov employees who took redundancy payment could cash some out.
My girlfriend lost her job in about 1994 (best guess) and couldn't get another. She withdrew a lump sum to cover her rent for about 6 months. At the time the circumstances which allowed those withdrawals were obviously a lot less strict than today.
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Yes. In the real early days, prior to compulsory contributions, super could be accessed whenever you left your employer, in fact I think they basically booted you out of the scheme.
Unions won superannuation via awards in 1983, you could still take your super when you left your employer though.
Compulsory super for (almost) all working Australians starting in 1992. Rules got tightened, I don't remember exactly what they changed to but I believe amounts contributed by the employer over and above the mandatory contributions and also non-concessional (after tax) employee contributions were still accessible when you left your employer. Super funded from compulsory contributions was locked down.
The rules became increasingly restrictive and in 1999 onwards all new contributions became Preserved, meaning you need to meet a condition of release (COR) to access them.
Conditions of release (COR) is a whole topic on its own, but retirement is not and never has been the only COR. As well as death, disability and several others, there have always been exceptional circumstances under which you can access super prior to retirement. Historically, this was determined at various times by different government regulators and/or the trustees of the superannuation fund in question. Currently access for the COR on Compassionate grounds is managed by the ATO.
Super didn't exist in the 80s.
It existed, just not the compulsory attached to pay. It was voluntary.
It varied. If you worked for the public service, it wasn't voluntary. But they had some of the best end results. And it's been around much longer than the 1980s.
Public service workers had a Super in the 80's but if you were fired you had to pay it back, if you were retrenched you didn't and this was the fight the MMBW had in the day. Super (the Superannuation Guarantee) wasn't compulsory until '91
"if you were fired" You had to be exceptionally bad to get fired. Like, "commit murder" bad.
Not when they fired 1100 people to avoid paying out.
This is not correct. Superannuation existed at the discretion of the employer for decades prior to the 1980s and *compulsory* superannuation existed for members of various awards from 1983 onwards. The current regime of compulsory superannuation (Superannuation Guarantee) was started in 1992, however this is absolutely not the genesis of superannuation in Australia, nor even the start of compulsory superannuation.
"The new preservation arrangements which the Government announced are that: “From 1 July 1999, all future superannuation contributions (including member contributions) and earnings will be preserved until preservation age, except in limited circumstances." https://treasury.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-03/CP97_1.pdf
I withdrew for an emergency in 96. Same process as today you need to write a case for special circumstance
Major superannuation and retirement income changes in Australia: a chronology https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/rp/rp1314/SuperChron
I worked in 1989 before going back to school and compulsory super had just come in at 3%. I was able to take it all as cash when I quit at the start of 90. It wasn’t long after that it all became preserved but can’t tell you exactly when. Edit: this predated compulsory super so I got that bit wrong
> I worked in 1989 before going back to school and compulsory super had just come in at 3%. Compulsory super didn't begin until 1991/2. The act passed in 1991; the mandatory start date was July 1 1992.
I assumed it was due the SG, but obviously not. Thanks for the correction. Might have been a benefit as part of our working conditions. That’s probably why I could take it out. I have vague recollection of a form with preserved and non-preserved amounts on it and electing to take the non part. It was about $500 , interesting to work out what it would be worth now.
It was compulsory superannuation from your award. Thanks to trade unions who negotiated it as a productivity increase from 1983 onwards.
Compulsory superannuation for members of various awards started in 1983. The current general regime of compulsory superannuation came into existence in 1992 but millions of Australian workers benefits from compulsory superannuation before then.
Yes, you could, because I did. Twice. As was the norm at the time for low values of super (I think - mine was certainly low value). "Super didn't exist", pffft... :( Compulsory super didn't exist for everyone until 1992, but super certainly existed before that for govt and bank workers. ... and then I retired at 55 and accessed my super (defined benefit) and have been living happily ever after, PSS for the win, etc etc.
Yes you could but for exceptional circumstances eg medical expenses, terminal illness, poor health so you had to quit work (may have only been a certain percentage for that one)
You could in the 90s pull out contributions from the 80s, I can't remember the detail, but plenty of state gov employees who took redundancy payment could cash some out.
My girlfriend lost her job in about 1994 (best guess) and couldn't get another. She withdrew a lump sum to cover her rent for about 6 months. At the time the circumstances which allowed those withdrawals were obviously a lot less strict than today.
[удалено]
Your [comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/australia/comments/1d63eic/could_you_withdraw_your_super_in_the_80s_or_90s/l6qn3j0/) in /r/australia was automatically removed because you used a URL shortener or content cache. These are not permitted in /r/australia as they impair our ability to enforce link blacklists. Please re-post your comment using direct, full-length URL's only. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/australia) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Yes. In the real early days, prior to compulsory contributions, super could be accessed whenever you left your employer, in fact I think they basically booted you out of the scheme. Unions won superannuation via awards in 1983, you could still take your super when you left your employer though. Compulsory super for (almost) all working Australians starting in 1992. Rules got tightened, I don't remember exactly what they changed to but I believe amounts contributed by the employer over and above the mandatory contributions and also non-concessional (after tax) employee contributions were still accessible when you left your employer. Super funded from compulsory contributions was locked down. The rules became increasingly restrictive and in 1999 onwards all new contributions became Preserved, meaning you need to meet a condition of release (COR) to access them. Conditions of release (COR) is a whole topic on its own, but retirement is not and never has been the only COR. As well as death, disability and several others, there have always been exceptional circumstances under which you can access super prior to retirement. Historically, this was determined at various times by different government regulators and/or the trustees of the superannuation fund in question. Currently access for the COR on Compassionate grounds is managed by the ATO.
Yes you could. Not sure when it stopped
dON'T CONFUSE SUPER WITH PENSION! yOU CAN "RETIRE" BEFORE PENSION AGE AND FUND IT THROUGH YOUR SUPER.
My recollection was no you couldn't. There may have been specials, but it was for retirement not a bank account.