Public holidays

Easter holidays are coming up, as well as Labour Day and ANZAC Day. Practice managers and owners need to be aware of the relevant entitlements for their staff. We have included some frequently asked questions we receive around public holidays. 

What do I pay my staff who aren’t working on a public holiday? 
Under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth), an employee is entitled to be absent from their employment on a public holiday. If the public holiday falls on a day when a full-time or part-time employee would normally work, they are entitled to be paid their base rate of pay for the ordinary hours they would have worked had it not been a public holiday. Casual employees who are not rostered to work on a public holiday do not receive payment for this day. 
 
What happens when a public holiday falls on a day a staff member would normally work, but they are already on annual leave? 
Public holidays are a separate entitlement from other types of leave. If an employee is on sick or annual leave and a public holiday occurs during this period, the employee should be paid for the public holiday as usual. The accrued leave entitlement they are using (such as annual leave) should not be used for that day, or debited back to them if it was.  

If an employee is rostered to work on the public holiday, do I have to pay the employee a higher rate?
Public holidays are a separate entitlement from other types of leave. If an employee is on a period of sick or annual leave and a public holiday occurs during this period, the employee should be paid for the day of the public holiday as usual. The accrued leave entitlement they are using should not be used for that day or debited back to them if it was.  

The Nurses Award 2020 has additional conditions that we have outlined below. 
 

Clause 28.2 Payment for work done on public holidays
This clause outlines that all work done by an employee during their ordinary shifts on a public holiday, including a substituted day, will be paid at:  
    - Full-time and part-time employees will receive 200 per cent of the minimum hourly rate applicable to their classification and pay point.
    - Casual employees will receive 200 per cent of the casual hourly rate.

Clause 28.4 Public holidays falling on rostered days off 
All full-timers will receive a day’s ordinary pay for public holidays that occur on their rostered day off, except where the public holiday falls on Saturday or Sunday with respect to Monday to Friday employees.

Clause 28.5 Accrued days off on public holidays 
Where an employee’s accrued day off falls on a public holiday, another day or part-day, determined by the employer, will be taken instead. Where practical the alternative day off will be taken within the same four- or five- week work cycle. 

Clause 28.6 Additional leave days by mutual agreement 
For part-time and full-time employees, instead of being paid 200 per cent of the minimum hourly rate applicable to their classification and pay point under the award, the employer and employee may mutually agree in writing at the time the public holiday is worked. The employee may be paid their ordinary rate of pay for time worked on a public holiday and have the same number of hours worked accrued to be taken as leave. This leave may be taken in conjunction with a period of annual leave.  

Can an employee refuse to work a public holiday? 
Employees have the right to refuse to work on a public holiday if the request in unreasonable or if the employee has reasonable grounds. Employers can request employees to work on a public holiday, but the request must be reasonable. Employees are protected from adverse action for reasonably refusing to work on a public holiday.

Please also refer to the ’Right to disconnect’ legislation when considering asking employees to work or be contacted during a public holiday. This started on 26 August 2024 for most employers and will start on 26 August 2025 for small businesses. Right to disconnect legislation protects employees who refuse to monitor, read or respond to contact or attempted contact outside their working hours, unless their refusal is reasonable. This also applies for public holidays.

Upcoming public holiday dates:
18 April – Good Friday
19 April – Day following Good Friday
20 April – Easter Sunday 
21 April – Easter Monday 
25 April – Anzac Day | Friday
5 May – Labour Day | Monday

For assistance relating to how to manage public holidays, please contact the Workplace Relations, who have a team of experts waiting to take your call on 07 3872 2264 or through email support at workplacerelations@amaq.com.au