This checkpoint assesses your understanding of wages, salaries, non-wage income, leave loading, deductions and budgeting. Calculators allowed. Show all working for short answer questions.
Multiple Choice
1. Which statement best describes the difference between a wage and a salary?
2. Priya earns $26 per hour and works 18 hours this week. What is her gross pay?
3. On a simple payslip, which amount is the largest?
4. A real estate agent earns 2.5% commission on a property sale of $850,000. How much commission do they earn?
5. Tom earns $22/hr normally and time-and-a-half on Saturdays. He works 6 hours on Saturday. How much does he earn for that shift?
6. A worker has an annual salary of $52,000 and receives 17.5% leave loading on 4 weeks of pay. What is the leave loading amount? (Assume 52 weeks in a year.)
7. Zara's gross pay is $1,200 per week. Her tax withheld is $180 and other deductions total $45. What is her net pay?
8. Two job offers are compared. Job A: $30/hr, 20 hrs/week, mostly weekdays. Job B: salary of $36,000/year, 25 hrs/week guaranteed, including weekends. Which statement is true?
9. A musician earns $0.08 per stream in royalties. Their song is streamed 250,000 times. How much do they earn?
10. A factory worker is paid $4.50 per item assembled. On Monday they assemble 120 items. Their target is 100 items per day, with a $25 bonus for exceeding the target. What is their total pay for Monday?
Short Answer
11. A retail assistant earns $24/hr on weekdays, time-and-a-half on Saturdays, and double time on Sundays. Last week they worked: 8 hrs Monday, 6 hrs Saturday, and 4 hrs Sunday.
(a) Calculate their pay for each day. (2 marks)
(b) Calculate their total gross pay for the week. (1 mark)
3 MARKS
12. Two job offers are presented to a Year 10 student:
Job A: $28/hr, average 15 hrs/week, mostly weekday evenings.
Job B: Salary of $26,000/year, 20 hrs/week guaranteed, mostly weekends.
(a) Calculate the annual gross income for each job. (2 marks)
(b) Which job would you recommend and why? Consider pay, hours, conditions and work-life balance. (2 marks)
4 MARKS
13. Liam earns a salary of $65,000 per year, paid monthly. His monthly deductions are: tax $980, superannuation $247.50, health insurance $125, and union fees $25.
(a) Calculate Liam's gross monthly pay. (1 mark)
(b) Calculate Liam's total monthly deductions. (1 mark)
(c) Calculate Liam's net monthly pay. (1 mark)
(d) If Liam wants to save 15% of his net monthly pay, how much should he put aside each month? (1 mark)
4 MARKS
1. C — A wage depends on hours worked; a salary is a fixed annual amount regardless of hours.
2. B — $26 × 18 = $468
3. A — Gross pay is total earnings before deductions, so it is always the largest.
4. D — $850,000 × 0.025 = $21,250
5. C — Time-and-a-half = 1.5 × $22 = $33/hr. 6 hrs × $33 = $198
6. B — Weekly pay = $52,000 ÷ 52 = $1,000. 4 weeks = $4,000. Leave loading = $4,000 × 0.175 = $700
7. A — Net pay = $1,200 − $180 − $45 = $975
8. B — Job A: $30 × 20 × 52 = $31,200/year. Job B: $36,000/year. Job B pays more annually and has more guaranteed hours, but requires weekend work.
9. C — $0.08 × 250,000 = $20,000
10. B — Piece rate: 120 × $4.50 = $540. Bonus for exceeding target = $25. Total = $540 + $25 = $565
11 (3 marks): (a) Monday: 8 × $24 = $192 [1]. Saturday: 6 × $36 = $216 [1]. Sunday: 4 × $48 = $192 [1]. (b) Total = $192 + $216 + $192 = $600 [1].
12 (4 marks): (a) Job A: $28 × 15 × 52 = $21,840/year [1]. Job B: $26,000/year [1]. (b) Recommendation should reference: Job A has fewer hours and weekday work (better for school) but pays less [1]. Job B pays more but requires weekend work every week, which may affect study and social life [1]. Either recommendation is acceptable if justified with mathematical evidence.
13 (4 marks): (a) Gross monthly = $65,000 ÷ 12 = $5,416.67 (or $5,416.66) [1]. (b) Total deductions = $980 + $247.50 + $125 + $25 = $1,377.50 [1]. (c) Net monthly = $5,416.67 − $1,377.50 = $4,039.17 [1]. (d) 15% of $4,039.17 = $605.88 (accept $605.87–$606) [1].