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Understanding Your Sick and Personal Leave Entitlements in Australia
In Australia, most full-time and part-time employees are entitled to paid personal leave, also known as sick and carer's leave. This National Employment Standards (NES) entitlement allows you to take paid time off when you are ill, injured, or need to care for an immediate family or household member who is sick or has an emergency.
How Personal Leave is Calculated
The law states that employees accrue personal leave at the rate of 1/26 of their ordinary hours of work for each week they are employed. This means for every week you work, you earn leave equal to roughly one hour for every 26 hours you are paid to work.
Over a full year of 52 weeks, this accrual rate results in an entitlement equivalent to 10 average working days for a full-time employee. For a standard 38-hour week (7.6 hours per day), this equals 76 hours of leave per year (38 hours/week × 52 weeks / 26 = 76 hours).
For part-time employees, the entitlement is calculated on the same pro-rata basis. Your annual entitlement in hours is simply your weekly ordinary hours multiplied by 2.
Example Calculation
Consider a part-time employee who works 22.5 hours per week and started their job on 15 January 2020. As of 19 October 2026, they have been employed for many years, so in the current accrual year they are entitled to the full annual amount.
- Annual entitlement: 22.5 hours/week × 2 = 45 hours.
- Accrued leave: Since they've worked a full accrual year, accrued hours = 45 hours.
- Leave used: They have already used 45 hours of leave this accrual year.
- Current balance: 45 hours - 45 hours = 0 hours.
- Balance in days: 0 hours / (22.5 hours / 5 days) = 0 days of leave remaining.
For a new employee who started on 1 April 2026 and works 38 hours a week, the calculation is different. By 19 October 2026, they have worked approximately 28.7 weeks. Their accrued leave is 38 hours/week × 28.7 weeks / 26 ≈ 41.96 hours. If they have used 15.2 hours, their balance is about 26.76 hours. In days (assuming a 7.6-hour day), this is roughly 3.5 days.
Common Scenarios
New Employees: Your leave accrues progressively from your start date. You do not receive the full annual entitlement upfront. The calculator determines the exact number of weeks you have worked in your current accrual year to calculate your accrued hours.
Part-Time Employees: Your entitlement is directly proportional to your hours. A common point of confusion is converting hours to days. The calculator provides a day estimate based on a standard 5-day workweek. If you work your hours over fewer or more days, the actual number of days you can take off will vary.
Casual Employees: Casual employees are generally not entitled to paid personal leave under the NES. If you are a casual worker, entering '0' for weekly hours will result in a zero balance.
Leave Balances: Your unused personal leave accumulates from year to year without any cap. This calculator shows your current balance for your present accrual year (typically the 12 months since your last employment anniversary).
Next Steps: Requesting Leave
When you need to take personal leave, notify your employer as soon as possible, following your workplace's policy. Your employer may request evidence, such as a medical certificate. It's helpful to provide clear details about your absence, the expected duration, and any work handover arrangements.
After using this calculator to check your balance, you can use our Letter Requesting Sick Leave template to formally notify your employer. The template guides you to include key details like your leave dates and reason, ensuring your request is clear and professional.