Secondment Agreements: A Guide To Flexible Work Arrangements

Secondments are a practical way to share talent across teams, group companies or even external partners without permanently changing someone’s employment. Done well, a secondment can boost capability, accelerate projects and build relationships-while keeping legal risk in check.

If you’re exploring a secondment in Australia, it’s important to get the structure and paperwork right from day one. In this guide, we’ll walk through what a secondment agreement is, when to use one, the key clauses to include, and the steps to implement a compliant arrangement under Australian employment law.

What Is A Secondment Agreement?

A secondment agreement sets out the terms under which an employee temporarily works for another team or organisation while usually remaining employed by their “home” employer. It documents the who, what, where and how of the arrangement so everyone knows their rights and responsibilities.

There are several common secondment models:

• Internal secondment: The employee moves to another team, location or business unit within the same employer (including within a corporate group).
• External secondment (outbound): Your employee is seconded to another organisation (for example, a customer, JV partner or subsidiary) to perform services for that host.
• External secondment (inbound): You host someone else’s employee in your business for a set period.

In most cases, the original employer remains the contractual employer and continues to pay the employee, while the host supervises day-to-day work. Costs are often recharged to the host under the agreement.

Why use an agreement at all? Because secondments change everyday work realities-who’s directing the employee, how they’re paid and insured, which policies apply, who owns what IP, how confidentiality is maintained, and what happens if the secondment ends early. A written arrangement gives clarity and reduces the likelihood of disputes or breaches of workplace laws.

When Should You Use A Secondment?

Secondments are especially useful when you want to:

• Share expertise quickly: Deploy specialists to priority projects without hiring permanently.
• Strengthen partnerships: Embed team members with a key client or JV partner to drive outcomes.
• Develop talent: Offer growth opportunities or cross-functional experience.
• Resource peak periods: Support a business unit that’s scaling or facing seasonal demand.

They’re also common across corporate groups (e.g. parent-subsidiary or sister companies) when centralised teams support regional operations.

Without a clear agreement, the risks increase. For example, you could end up with confusion over who directs the employee, exposure to WHS or workers compensation liabilities you didn’t intend, or disagreements over who owns new intellectual property created during the placement. Documenting the arrangement upfront avoids those headaches.

Key Clauses To Include In Your Agreement

Each secondment is unique, but most agreements should cover the following areas in plain, practical terms. Use these as a checklist and tailor to your situation.

1) Parties, Role And Duration

• Identify the home employer, host and employee.
• Describe the duties, location, start date and expected end date (and any extension process).
• Confirm whether the role is full-time or part-time and set core hours.

2) Employment Relationship And Direction

• State that the employee remains employed by the home employer throughout the secondment (unless a different structure is intended).
• Explain the host’s right to direct day-to-day work, alongside the home employer’s overarching responsibilities.

3) Pay, Benefits And Cost Allocation

• Confirm who pays wages, superannuation and allowances, and whether the host reimburses the home employer.
• Address overtime, on-call loadings or allowances if duties change.
• Explain how leave accrues and is approved during the secondment.

4) Policies, Conduct And Performance

• Clarify which workplace policies apply (often both sets, with priority rules if there is a conflict).
• Set expectations for performance feedback, escalation and disciplinary processes.

5) Confidentiality And Privacy

• Bind the employee (and both organisations) to keep each other’s confidential information safe and only use it for the secondment.
• Ensure handling of personal information aligns with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the relevant Privacy Policy.

6) Intellectual Property Ownership

• Allocate ownership of IP created during the secondment (e.g. who owns new code, designs, processes).
• If ownership needs to transfer, consider a targeted IP Assignment to avoid future uncertainty.

7) Conflicts, Restraints And Non-Solicitation

• Address conflicts of interest and confidentiality around competing businesses and clients.
• If appropriate, include reasonable non-solicitation or post-secondment restraint terms (seek restraint of trade advice to ensure enforceability).

8) Work Health And Safety (WHS)

• Confirm the host will provide a safe workplace and adequate training, equipment and supervision.
• Outline incident reporting processes and cooperation between the parties on WHS obligations.

9) Insurance And Liability

• Set out who holds public liability, professional indemnity (if relevant) and workers compensation cover.
• Include mutual indemnities that reflect control over the workplace and supervision.

10) Systems Access, Data Security And Return Of Property

• Explain access to IT systems and data security protocols, especially if both organisations’ systems are used.
• Require return or destruction of confidential information and property at the end of the secondment.

11) Ending The Secondment Early

• Allow early termination on notice (and immediate termination for serious breaches or safety concerns).
• Describe the handover process so the employee returns smoothly to the home employer or transitions elsewhere if agreed.

12) Dispute Resolution And Governance

• Include an escalation path (e.g. operational leads, then executives) and a simple dispute resolution process.
• Nominate an agreement manager at each organisation to coordinate the placement.

For external placements where the legal employer might change at any point, consider whether you also need a Deed of Novation or updated contracts to reflect a new employing entity. If the employee remains with the home employer (typical), the secondment agreement should make this crystal clear.

Employment Law And Compliance In Australia

Secondments must fit within Australia’s workplace laws. Here are the key areas to double-check before you proceed.

Fair Work Act, Awards And Enterprise Agreements

• Confirm the employee’s classification, minimum rates, hours and penalty entitlements under any applicable modern award or enterprise agreement.
• If duties, hours or location change, ensure the employee’s minimum entitlements are still met (including overtime or allowances if triggered).
• If a major change is proposed, a consultation process may be required under an award or agreement.

Consent And Contractual Settings

• Secondments should be voluntary and documented. Check the current Employment Contract for mobility clauses and any conditions around changing duties or location.
• If the contract is silent (or too general), use a written secondment agreement to capture the specifics and the employee’s consent.

Leave, Superannuation And Payroll

• Leave continues to accrue with the legal employer unless otherwise agreed and compliant.
• Superannuation should be paid on ordinary time earnings; if pay or hours change, check super triggers and thresholds.
• If the host reimburses salary costs, spell out how payroll and on-costs are calculated to avoid disputes.

Work Health And Safety, Workers Compensation

• Both the home employer and host have WHS duties. The host typically controls the workplace and must provide a safe environment and induction.
• Ensure workers compensation insurance is in place and the claims process is clear if an incident occurs at the host site.

Confidentiality, Privacy And Data

• Where the secondee accesses the host’s systems or customer data, privacy compliance and data security rules must be followed.
• Ensure confidentiality obligations align with your Non-Disclosure Agreement or the secondment agreement’s confidentiality clauses.

Step-By-Step: Putting A Secondment In Place

If you’re ready to move ahead, here’s a practical, lawyer-approved path to setting up your secondment.

Step 1: Map Objectives And Scope

Write a short brief: why you need the secondment, the expected outcomes, the role, location, hours and duration. This makes drafting and approvals faster.

Step 2: Check Existing Contracts And Policies

Review the employee’s current contract, any award/enterprise agreement, and both organisations’ policies. Identify gaps (e.g. location change, confidentiality, IT access) that your secondment agreement must cover.

Step 3: Choose The Structure

Decide whether this is an internal, external outbound or external inbound secondment. Confirm who remains the legal employer, who supervises day-to-day work, and how costs are handled.

Step 4: Prepare The Agreement And Supporting Documents

Draft a clear, tailored Secondment Agreement that reflects your structure and compliance obligations. Ensure it addresses duties, pay, supervision, IP, confidentiality, policies, WHS, insurance and termination.

Depending on the setup, you may also update or put in place:

• Employment Contract variations or a letter of assignment if needed for clarity.
• An Non-Disclosure Agreement (if sensitive information will be shared before the secondment starts or outside the agreement scope).
• A Privacy Policy alignment plan if the secondee will handle personal information in new systems.
• An IP Assignment where project deliverables must be owned by the host or transferred back to the home employer.
• A Deed of Novation only if you are formally changing who employs or contracts with the worker (not typical for a standard secondment).

Step 5: Induct And Onboard

Coordinate induction at the host site: systems access, WHS briefing, confidentiality, conduct and relevant policies. Confirm who approves leave and expenses, and how timesheets or deliverables will be tracked.

Step 6: Manage And Review

Agree on reporting lines and performance check-ins. If the secondment may be extended, set review dates and a process to confirm extensions in writing.

Step 7: Exit And Handover

As the secondment ends, organise knowledge transfer, revoke system access, and ensure all property and confidential information are returned. If the arrangement evolves into a permanent move, update contracts appropriately.

Key Takeaways

• A secondment agreement allows you to share talent across teams or organisations while keeping the employment relationship clear and compliant.
• Document the essentials: role, duration, pay and costs, supervision, policies, confidentiality, IP, WHS, insurance and how the secondment can end early.
• Check Fair Work, awards, leave, superannuation and workers compensation obligations-secondments must still meet minimum entitlements in Australia.
• Protect sensitive information and ownership of deliverables through confidentiality provisions, a suitable Non-Disclosure Agreement and, if needed, an IP Assignment.
• Use a tailored Secondment Agreement and align it with any existing Employment Contract and policies for a smooth, low-risk placement.

If you’d like a consultation on setting up a Secondment Agreement for your business, you can reach us at 1800 730 617 or team@sprintlaw.com.au for a free, no-obligations chat.