Gig workers and casuals will be waiting until the second half of the year for tougher regulations to improve their rights as workers.
Employment and Workplace Relations Minister Tony Burke said the crackdown on insecure work promised by Labor at the last election won't start until mid-2023.
Speaking at the National Press Club on Wednesday, Mr Burke said consultation would begin on the government's "more controversial" industrial relations reforms next week with the intention of introducing legislation mid-way through this year.
This will include the "same job, same pay" definition of a casual employee, dealing with the gig economy, criminalising wage theft, and safety principles and minimum standards for long-haul drivers.
Talks with business groups and unions will start next week.
The severity of punishments for wage theft breaches will be up for discussion, with jail time for the worst offenders not ruled out.
"The hope with criminalising anything is that the law doesn't get used because it has a behavioural effect ... the reality often is, sadly, that you end up having a couple of fairly high profile uses of law before the behavioural effect takes place," Mr Burke said.
He said he would "take no joy" in criminalising wage theft but said there was a prevailing attitude of non-compliance when it comes to employment law.
"There's been a view that 'oh yeah, we don't have to take this as seriously paying our workers as we do paying the Commonwealth, or as we do complying with local government'."
More immediately, the government plans to close loopholes that could jeopardise the workplace laws introduced last year to drive wage growth and improve job security.
The Albanese government passed the new workplace laws last year, including the expansion of multi-employer bargaining rights.
