Working regular hours

You're entitled to at least 4 weeks' paid annual leave a year. This doesn't include public holidays or sick leave.

Your annual leave balance will either:

• be given to you in full each year on the anniversary of the day you started work, or
• build up ("accrue") as you work, to add up to 4 weeks at the end of each year.

Working irregular hours or shifts

If you don't have set hours, your employer can:

• decide with you what 4 weeks' leave means and record this in your employment agreement, or
• build up your leave as you go based on the hours you've worked (calculated at 4/52 for every hour you work).

Workers with no set hours or on short fixed-term contracts

You can choose to be paid extra instead of earning annual leave if you're either:

• on a fixed-term contract for less than a year
• a casual employee with no fixed hours.

You'll be paid an extra 8% on each pay (before tax), and you won't build up any leave.

Workers on parental leave

You still build up leave while you’re on parental leave.

Working for yourself or contracting

If you're self-employed, you don't earn any paid leave.

Carrying over leave

Your leave doesn't expire if you don't take it within the year — but your employer might have limits on how much leave you can carry over.

If you build up too much leave:

• your employer can make you take some or all of it
• you can cash in up to a week of your entitlement each year.

Cashing in leave