Work
How annual leave accrues in Australia
Annual leave builds up with every hour you work. You don't have to wait for your anniversary.
Under the National Employment Standards (NES), full-time and part-time employees get 4 weeks of paid annual leave for each year of service. Some shift workers get 5 weeks. Leave accrues progressively through the year based on ordinary hours worked, and unused leave carries over from year to year. Casual employees don't get paid annual leave; casual loading is paid instead.
The formula
Hours accrued = ordinary hours worked × 4 ÷ 52, which is about 0.0769 hours of leave per hour worked. For a 38-hour week that's 2.923 hours a week, or 152 hours a year.
Worked examples
| Situation | Calculation | Leave accrued |
|---|---|---|
| Full-time 38 h, 26 weeks | 38 × 26 × 4 ÷ 52 | 76 h (2 weeks) |
| Part-time 24 h, 52 weeks | 24 × 52 × 4 ÷ 52 | 96 h (4 weeks of 24 h) |
| Part-time 15 h, 10 weeks | 15 × 10 × 4 ÷ 52 | 11.5 h |
💡 Pro Tip: Your award or enterprise agreement may add rules, such as leave loading or extra leave. The Fair Work Ombudsman website has award-specific tools.
✨ Key Takeaways
- 4 weeks a year, accruing with ordinary hours worked.
- Part-timers accrue pro rata on the hours they actually work.
- Casuals don't accrue paid annual leave.
Open the annual leave calculator →
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