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Legislation Loop Hole allows Employees to Salary Sacrifice 100% of Rental Expenses |
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Do you know how much leave you are entitled to this Christmas? |
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Do you know how much leave you are entitled to this Christmas? This time of year sees many of us taking some well earned time off work. Along with deciding where to set-up your beach chair, it is important to know how much annual leave you are entitled to. This will ensure that you don’t find yourself short of accrued time and as a result, possibly leave yourself short of the all important holiday spending money! Annual Leave Permanent employees accrue annual leave over each four week period that they carry out continued work for their employer. Accumulated entitlements are credited to the employee 13 times a year. Leave entitlements for one four week period are calculated as follows: 1/13 x Average hours worked in the four week period. According to this formula, an employee who works an average of 38 hours per week and has worked for their employer for a period of 12 months is entitled 152 hours, or 4 weeks, of annual leave. This is on the provision that their average weekly hours do not change during that period. It is important to note, that in this day and age most employees are working more than the allocated 38 hours per week. Despite increased average working hours, under the legislation, it is generally not possible to accumulate more than 4 weeks annual leave in any 12 month period, unless your employment contract specifically states otherwise. As an alternative to taking the accrued leave time, employees are entitled to take the option of “cashing in” their leave entitlements. In order for this to be effective, the employee must put in writing that he/she elects to forgo the accrued entitlements. Once this is accepted and approved by the employer, the employee receives the equivalent “cash value” payment for the total amount of agreed leave time that the employee has elected to forgo. Sick Leave As with annual leave entitlements, all permanent employees are also entitled to an accrued amount of sick leave which can be taken when they suffer a personal illness or injury. In order to be able to claim their sick leave entitlements, the employee must give notice to their employer as soon as is reasonably practicable. Dependant on the circumstances, a reasonable time may be before or after the leave period has commenced. Similar to calculating annual leave, the formula for sick leave entitlement is: 1/26 x Average hours worked in the four week period. As a result, for a person who works an average of 38 hours per week this equates to 10 days of sick leave per year. Sick leave that is not taken in any 12 month period is available to the employee for a period of at least 3 years from the end of each such year. It is necessary to note that if an employee is receiving workers’ compensation (under Commonwealth, State or Territory law) the employee is not entitled to also receive paid sick leave. At The Quinn Group the experienced team of lawyers are able to advise you on all aspects of Employment Law, whether you are an employer or an employee. For more information regarding leave entitlements or any other employment related queries, contact us on 1300 QUINNS or click here to submit an online enquiry. |
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Disclaimer: The contents of this document titled “The Quintessential Brief” (the ‘Material’) are provided as general information only. It is not intended to be given as advice and should not be relied upon as such. If you are concerned about any issue raised by the Material then you should seek your own professional advice. No warranty is given in relation to the accuracy, currency or completeness of the Material. No reader should act on the basis of any matter contained in this publication without first obtaining specific professional advice. Where applicable, liability is limited by the NSW Solicitors Scheme under the Professional Standards Act 1994 (NSW), and other relevant state legislation. The Quinn Group respects your privacy. Should you not wish to receive this newsletter in the future please contact us on 1300 784 667.