Changes to Family and Domestic Violence Leave Entitlements for All Employees
Paid leave taking effect from 1 February 2023 and 1 August 2023 depending on number of employees within business
Important changes to employees’ entitlement to leave for family and domestic violence come into effect in 2023. The dates the changes take effect depend on the size of the employer.
Full-time, part-time and casual employees of non-small business employers (which are employers with 15 or more employees) will be able to access 10 days of paid family and domestic violence leave each year from 1 February 2023.
Full-time, part-time and casual employees of small business employers (which are employers with fewer than 15 employees) will be able to access 10 days of paid family and domestic violence leave each year from 1 August 2023.
The 10 days paid leave entitlement will be available upfront and will not be cumulative from year to year. It is not pro-rated for part-time or casual employees.
The changes replace the current minimum entitlement of five days of unpaid leave for family and domestic violence under the National Employment Standards.
Payment for Leave
Full-time and part-time employees can take paid family and domestic violence leave at their full rate of pay for the hours they would have worked if they weren’t on leave.
Casual employees are to be paid at their full rate of pay for the hours they were rostered to work in the period they took leave.
An employee’s full rate of pay is their base rate plus any loadings, overtime or penalty rates, incentive-based payments and bonuses, monetary allowances and any other separately identifiable amounts.
Recording of Leave on Pay Slips
Employers must not include information on the employee pay slips relating to family and domestic violence leave. That is, pay slips must not mention the leave, including leave taken and leave balances. The purpose of this is to reduce the risk to an employee’s safety if they are accessing the paid family and domestic violence leave.
The leave could be recorded as ordinary hours of work, any other kind of payment or leave i.e. special leave, miscellaneous leave or leave – other.
For further information regarding employment entitlements, please contact us at Workplace Legal on (03) 9972 4950 or at info@workplacelegal.com.au .