Working On Public Holidays In Australia: Pay, Rosters, Compliance

Public holidays are great for customers and communities, but they can be tricky for small businesses to navigate.

If you open your doors, you’ll need to think about staffing, penalty rates and whether it’s reasonable to ask people to work. If you close, you still need to handle entitlements correctly.

This guide steps through what you need to know about working on a public holiday in Australia from an employer’s perspective - including when you can request staff to work, what to pay, and how to set up clear policies that keep you compliant and avoid disputes.

What Counts As A Public Holiday For Your Business?

In Australia, public holidays operate at national, state/territory and sometimes local levels. These include nationwide days (like New Year’s Day and Australia Day) as well as state-specific or regional holidays (like certain show days or foundation days).

Why does this matter? Because entitlements apply based on where the employee works (their usual work location), not where your head office is located. Double-check the public holidays declared in each state or region where you have staff.

Also consider substitute or “additional” public holidays. Many jurisdictions declare an extra day when a public holiday falls on a weekend. Your obligations apply to the day that is legally recognised as the public holiday in that location, even if it’s a Monday in lieu of a Saturday.

Can You Require Employees To Work On A Public Holiday?

As a rule of thumb, you can make a request for an employee to work on a public holiday - but whether it’s “reasonable” depends on the circumstances. Employees also have the right to reasonably refuse.

Factors that influence what’s reasonable include:

• Operational needs and the nature of your business (e.g. hospitality, retail, healthcare).
• The employee’s personal circumstances (like family responsibilities or religious observance).
• Whether they’re casual, part-time or full-time, and their pattern of work.
• How much notice you gave, and whether working public holidays is reflected in their contract or roster patterns.
• Any applicable modern award or enterprise agreement rules specific to your industry.

Good practice is to plan early and consult with your team well in advance. This reduces last‑minute issues and helps you decide who’s available, who prefers to work (some welcome penalty rates), and who should be rostered off.

To avoid disputes, ensure your Employment Contract covers ordinary hours, rostering, and public holiday expectations for full-time and part-time staff. For casuals, use a tailored Employment Contract that addresses availability and how shifts are offered and accepted.

How Much Do You Need To Pay For Working On A Public Holiday?

Most awards and enterprise agreements require premium or “penalty” rates when an employee works on a public holiday. The exact rate varies by award and role (for example, hospitality, retail and health services all differ), and can also depend on whether the hours are ordinary or overtime.

If your team is covered by a modern award, check the public holiday clause and classification levels before rostering. If they’re on an enterprise agreement, use that agreement’s public holiday rules. If an employee is award or agreement free, the National Employment Standards (NES) will apply, but you should still ensure the rate is fair and lawful.

To get across the basics, it helps to understand how Penalty Rates work (and when they kick in). Keep in mind that overtime rules can also apply if the employee works beyond their ordinary hours. If you expect extended trading, review your obligations under overtime laws as well.

Other payroll points to consider:

• Minimum engagement periods: Many awards set a minimum number of hours for each shift, including on public holidays.
• Breaks: Break entitlements still apply, and some awards provide additional rules for breaks on public holidays.
• Superannuation: Check your super obligations for public holiday hours (generally super applies to ordinary time earnings unless your award or agreement says otherwise).

Finally, if your business decides to close on a public holiday, most full-time and part-time employees who would normally work that day are entitled to be absent without loss of pay (this is a day off, not annual leave). Casuals don’t have paid public holiday entitlements unless their award or agreement states otherwise.

Rostering, Notice And Record‑Keeping Essentials

Clear rostering is your best tool for a smooth public holiday period. Give as much notice as possible, confirm shifts in writing (your rostering system or email is fine), and check any award-specific notice requirements.

If your industry has special rules about rosters or minimum notice to change shifts, make sure your processes align with the legal requirements for employee rostering. Where you need to change a published roster, ensure you’re also meeting any minimum notice for shift changes that apply under the relevant award or agreement.

On the day, accurate record keeping is critical. Capture start and finish times, breaks, and any changes. Good records help you calculate penalty rates correctly and protect you if questions arise later.

Tip: Align your payroll calendar with public holiday schedules. If you run off-cycle pay for public holiday shifts, establish a standard process and stick to it. Consistency reduces errors and employee queries.

Using Time Off In Lieu, Substitute Days And Closedowns

Many awards and enterprise agreements allow time off instead of paying public holiday penalties, but only if certain conditions are met (usually a written agreement with the employee). This is often called time off in lieu (TOIL) or “time off instead of payment.”

If you’re considering TOIL, check your specific instrument first, then document the arrangement so it’s clear when the time off will be taken and at what equivalence (for example, an hour worked equals an hour and a half off). For a quick primer, see how Time In Lieu works and how to put a compliant process around it.

Substitute days are another option in some awards and agreements. With mutual agreement, you and an employee may substitute a different day for the public holiday, changing when the entitlement applies. Again, you’ll want the substitution documented before the shift occurs.

If you close your business on the public holiday (“closedown”), communicate early. Let staff know which locations are affected, confirm who is rostered off but paid (typically permanent staff who would otherwise have worked), and outline any special arrangements, such as substituted days later in the year.

Put It In Writing: Contracts, Policies And Training

The best way to avoid public holiday confusion is to make your approach clear in your contracts and workplace policies.

At a minimum, ensure every new starter receives the correct Employment Contract (for full-time or part-time roles) or a tailored Employment Contract for casuals. These should set expectations around ordinary hours, rostering, public holidays, and how additional hours are handled under the applicable award or agreement.

Back this up with simple, practical policies that your team understands. Many businesses document rostering rules, availability, and public holiday processes within a staff handbook. If you don’t have one yet, a structured Staff Handbook can help embed consistent practices across the whole team.

Finally, check that your arrangements actually reflect the award or agreement that covers your staff. Periodic Award Compliance reviews are a smart way to reduce risk and keep up with changes.

Training And Communication

Public holidays often involve junior managers making on-the-day decisions. Give them a short checklist covering who can approve extra hours, how to record variations, and who to call if a dispute pops up.

For payroll and rostering teams, provide a one-page guide that lists the relevant public holiday rates for each classification, your TOIL process, and your cut-off times for finalising hours. A little prep can save a lot of headaches.

Practical Tips For Busy Periods

• Plan early and ask for expressions of interest from staff who want the extra pay.
• Share draft rosters, then confirm in writing once final.
• Put TOIL agreements in writing before the shift - not after.
• Keep a clean audit trail of hours worked, rates paid and authorisations.
• If in doubt, check the award, then adjust your roster or pay accordingly.

Key Takeaways

• You can request employees to work on public holidays, but whether it’s reasonable (and whether an employee can refuse) depends on your operational needs, personal circumstances and what your award or agreement says.
• Public holiday pay usually attracts penalties under awards or enterprise agreements, so confirm the correct classification and rate before rostering and check the rules around Penalty Rates and overtime.
• Good rostering and early notice reduce last‑minute issues - follow the legal requirements for employee rostering and any award-specific notice periods for roster changes.
• Time off in lieu and substitute days can be useful, but must be allowed by your instrument and agreed in writing - see how Time In Lieu typically works.
• Lock in the rules in your contracts and policies, using the right Employment Contract for permanent staff and a compliant Employment Contract for casuals, and keep an eye on Award Compliance.

If you’d like a consultation on managing public holiday work in your business, you can reach us at 1800 730 617 or team@sprintlaw.com.au for a free, no-obligations chat.