Tips and recommendations 

Is full-time 38 or 40 hours?

Leia Doyle

Is full-time 38 or 40 hours?

The 40 hour working week was adopted in 1947 and, in 1983, the Australian Conciliation and Arbitration Commission introduced the 38 hour week. Most of us in full time employment are used to working a 5-day week, Monday to Friday. Dividing 38 hours by 5 days gives us 7.6 hours each day.

What are full-time workers entitled to?

A full-time employee: usually works, on average, 38 hours each week (see hours of work) can be a permanent employee or on a fixed-term contract. is entitled to paid leave including annual leave and sick & carer’s leave.

How many hours can you legally work in a day in Australia?

7.6 hours
In Australia, an employee can work up to 38 hours in a week or 7.6 hours a day. The spread of hours must be defined with the employer, usually worked from Monday to Friday. Many organisations may ask employees to remain available to work ‘reasonable overtime’ where required.

Is a 40 hour working week legal in Australia?

My client refers to an ordinary ’40 hour week’. Is this ok? No. Assuming the employees are covered by the Fair Work Act 2009, the maximum ordinary working week is set at a maximum of 38 hours (and may be less if the employee is covered by a Modern Award or Enterprise Agreement).

How many days in a row can you work without a day off Australia?

3 consecutive days of more than 10 hours without 48 hours break immediately after. 8 days of 10 hours in a 4-week roster. 10 hours in a day, if the employee is under 18 years old.

What is the maximum legal working hours per day?

You shouldn’t have to work more than an average of 8 hours in each 24-hour period, averaged out over 17 weeks. You can work more than 8 hours a day as long as the average over 17 weeks is no more than 8. Your employer can’t ask you to opt out of this limit.

Is the 9 5 dead?

Is the 9-to-5 workday dead? The answer is no — but not for the reasons you think. Instead, the pandemic revealed it to be the modern-day illusion it always was. Even before lockdown, most workers couldn’t fit their work into the allotted eight hours.

Do you get pro-rata after 5 years?

Most full-time, part-time or casual employees in NSW are entitled to long service leave. By law, there’s also a pro-rata entitlement after 5 years if you resign as a result of illness, incapacity, or domestic or other pressing necessity.