The Fair Work Act sets out that when a public holiday falls on a weekend, it can be substituted for another day. This year, Australia Day falls on Saturday, 26 January. For this reason, the public holiday for Australia Day will be observed on Monday, 28 January across all states and territories.

Public holiday penalty rates do not need to be paid for work performed on Saturday, 26 January, but must be paid for work performed on Monday, 28 January.

If your business has an enterprise agreement, this rule may be modified by the terms of that agreement.

Public holidays penalties apply differently for different staff classifications.

Full-time

Full-time employees, who normally work on the day the public holiday falls on, receive a paid day off. This is paid at their base rate of pay, for the ordinary hours they would have worked. An employer can ask a full time employee to work on a public holiday, given the employee will get paid the relevant penalty for working.

Part-time

If a part-time employee’s usual hours fall on the public holiday, they will get paid at their base rate for those hours. For January 28th 2019, an employee is not entitled to payment if they don’t have usual ordinary hours of work on a Monday. An employer isn’t allowed to alter an employee’s roster to avoid a public holiday.

Casual

Most awards state that casual employees are entitled to be paid at a penalty rate of pay for hours worked on a public holiday. There is no payment for public holidays that they do not work. Check your award or agreement for the conditions that apply to your business.

The penalty rates required to be paid for public holidays for some of the most popular awards include:

If you are unsure of how the public holiday affects your business, call the Fair Work Infoline on 13 13 94 or visit www.fairwork.gov.au.