3.1. Annual leave paid time off work granted by Ermha to staff members. Considered as planned leave.

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1 1. PURPOSE 1.1. Ermha is committed to ensuring the health and wellbeing of its staff and recognise their rights and entitlement to leave as outlined in this policy. Leave is viewed as one of a range of mechanisms available to staff to manage a flexible life work balance Ermha leave provisions are in accordance with the Fair Work Act 2009, the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services (SCHADS) Industry Award 2010 and the Long Service Leave Act In addition to this policy Ermha adheres to the aforementioned acts and awards. 2. SCOPE 2.1. All Ermha staff 3. DEFINITIONS 3.1. Annual leave paid time off work granted by Ermha to staff members. Considered as planned leave Personal / carers leave to be taken if staff member is not fit for work because of a personal illness or injury; or to provide care or support to a member of the employee s immediate family or a member of the employee s household, who requires care or support due to a personal illness, or personal injury; or an unexpected emergency Compassionate leave can be taken when someone in the staff member s immediate family; contracts or develops a personal illness that poses a serious threat to his or her life; or sustains a personal injury that poses a serious threat to his or her life; or dies Community service leave can be taken to engage in eligible community service activities. These include; jury service (including attendance for jury selection) that is required by or under a law of the Commonwealth, a State or a Territory; or a voluntary emergency management activity. Further information is available in the Fair Work Act 2009, s Long service leave (LSL) period of paid leave for staff who have been working for the same organisation for a long period of time Ceremonial leave can be taken by staff members who are legitimately required by Indigenous tradition to be absent from work for Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander ceremonial purposes Public holidays a holiday taken by the whole country or selected states Leave without pay (LWOP) unpaid leave of absence from employment Continuous employment An employee s employment is to be regarded as being continuous despite: Page 1 of 8

2 The taking of any annual leave or LSL Any absence from work on account of illness or injury The taking of any period of adoption, maternity or paternity leave (paid or unpaid), not exceeding 12 months; or the taking of any longer specified in the employee s employment agreement (see Long Service Leave Act 1992 s. 62 for further information as well as the HR 319 Parental Leave Policy and Procedure) The National Employment Standards (NES) A minimum set of standards that apply to the employment of national system employees. The NES set out 10 minimum conditions for employees My Staff Info Online web-based platform for staff to access and change their personal details, lodge timesheets, view leave balances, submit leave requests and access payslips. 4. POLICY 4.1. General Annual Leave, Personal / CarersLeave and Long Service Leave entitlements: Annual Leave 20 days per annum Personal/ Carer s Leave 10 days per annum Long Service Leave 13 weeks after 15 years of continuous service Note the entitlements listed are for those of staff member working full time and are pro-rata for part time staff, Compassionate Leave, Community Service Leave, Ceremonial Leave: These are not allocated as an allowance or accrued; these leaves will be awarded if the criteria are satisfactorily met Casual staff members are not entitled to paid leave, except for the following provisions: Parental leave (Government funded) Part time staff will accrue all leave on a pro rata basis Shift-worker entitlement: Entitlements for Shift-workers are defined by the Fair Work Act as: The employee is employed in an enterprise in which shifts are continuously rostered 24 hours a day for seven days a week; and is regularly rostered to work these shifts; and regularly works on Sundays and public holidays; or the employee is in a class of employees prescribed by the regulations as shift-workers for the purposes of the National Employment Standards (refer to the Fair Work Act 2009, s.87 (3)). A shift-worker may receive 5 weeks of annual leave where they work for more than 4 ordinary hours on 10 or more weekends in a year (refer to the Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry (SCHCDS) Award 2010, clause 31.2) All staff members on leave (including LWOP) will remain employed by Ermha Approval of leave will be subject to operational requirements. Page 2 of 8

3 Staff will operate on a rotating or negotiated system during peak holiday periods to ensure they are shared in a fair and equitable manner. This includes Christmas, Easter and school holidays Backfill arrangements may vary according to the program area Annual leave Entitlement to annual leave: Staff employed on a full time basis are entitled to a leave of absence with full pay for 20 working days (four weeks) per year. Shift workers are entitled to 25 days (five weeks) of paid annual leave if the employee works for more than 4 ordinary hours on 10 or more weekends. Staff employed on a part time basis are entitled to pro-rata leave accrual Accrual of annual leave: Annual leave will accrue progressively during a year of service, and will accumulate from year to year. Annual leave continues to accrue when an employee takes a period of annual leave or paid personal/carers leave. Annual leave will not accrue on any form of unpaid leave Taking paid annual leave: Paid annual leave must be taken for a period agreed between the Ermha supervisor and staff member. Ermha will not unreasonably refuse to agree to a request from staff members to take paid annual leave, though all leave will be approved subject to operational requirements. Public holidays are not included as leave days. A minimum of 3 months notice must be provided when applying for 6, or more, consecutive weeks of annual leave Personal injury or illness whilst on annual leave: If staff suffer a personal injury or illness while on annual leave, the annual leave can be re-credited (and time taken as personal leave) providing a medical certificate is provided Annual leave loading: In addition to their ordinary pay, staff will be entitled to payment of an annual leave loading of 17.5% of their ordinary rate of pay. Shift workers in addition to their ordinary pay, will be paid the higher of: Annual leave loading of 17.5% of their ordinary rate of pay; or The weekend and shift penalties the employee would have received had they not been on leave during the relevant period Please note: Employees who are ceasing their employment and cashing in please see sections & Other payments: Annual leave payments include the base pay rate of pay for ordinary hours, and annual leave loading. Annual leave payments do not include: Monetary allowances Overtime or penalty rates Any other separately identifiable amounts Payment of annual leave upon termination of employment: The employee is entitled to receive payment for any untaken leave which has accrued Cashing out annual leave (in circumstances other than termination of employment): A written request must be submitted to the Director each time this request is made. The Page 3 of 8

4 employee must retain an entitlement to at least 20 days (4 weeks) paid annual leave (refer to the Fair Work Act 2009, National Employment Standards, s. 94) Management of annual leave: Ermha encourages staff to take annual leave regularly, and has implemented a 30 day (six week) maximum balance of annual leave that an employee can hold at any given time. This six week limit is to encourage staff to utilise their annual leave on a regular basis to avoid burnout, to ensure all staff have the opportunity to utilise annual leave each year, and maintain a work/life balance. If staff have accumulated more than 30 days annual leave, the staff member and their supervisor will work together to reach an agreement on taking the leave in excess of 30 days. If agreement cannot be reached, the staff member may be directed with six months written notice to reduce their leave balance (take leave) at a time that is suitable to Ermha to reach a balance no greater than 30 days accrued leave Personal / carer s leave Amount of leave: Staff employed on a full time basis are entitled to 10 days of paid personal/carer s leave for each year of service with Ermha, This entitlement is pro-rata for staff employed on a part time basis. Staff are entitled to two days of unpaid carer s leave for each permissible occasion (in accordance with 3.2) (refer to the Fair Work Act 2009, s. 102) Accrual of leave: Personal / carer s leave will accrue progressively during a year of service, and will accumulate from year to year Taking paid personal / carer s leave: If an employee is unable to attend work due to personal injury or illness (or as per 3.2) they must notify their supervisor of the intended absence as soon as practicable prior to the commencement of their rostered hours. A medical certificate from a registered health practitioner or other agreed documentation must be provided for any period of absence of longer than one day. Evidence required for absences of less than one day is at the discretion of the supervisor. Public holidays are not included as leave days. In the event that the amount of time required for personal / carer s leave exceeds the employee s available balance, the employee may seek approval from their Director to access their annual leave entitlement, for a maximum of five days per year. Evidence must be provided as above Taking unpaid carer s leave: An employee may take unpaid carer s leave for a particular permissible occasion as a single continuous period of up to two days; or any separate periods agreed by Ermha. An employee cannot take unpaid carer s leave if they could instead take paid personal / carer s leave Compassionate leave Amount of leave: A staff member is entitled to two days of compassionate leave for each permissible occasion Taking compassionate leave: A staff member may take compassionate leave for a particular permissible occasion if the leave is taken to; spend time with the members of Page 4 of 8

5 their immediate family or household who has contracted or developed the personal illness, or sustained the personal injury that poses a serious threat to his or her life; or after the death of the member of the staff member s immediate family or household (as per 3.3). A staff member may take compassionate leave for a particular occasion as; a single continuous two day period; or two separate periods of one day each; or any separate periods to which is agreed on between Ermha and the staff member Payment of compassionate leave: The employee will be paid the base rate of pay for the employee s ordinary hours of work during that time period Notice: If staff apply for compassionate leave the notice must be provided to the direct supervisor as soon as practicable, including the intended return date Evidence: Staff accessing compassionate leave are required to provide a medical certificate from a registered health practitioner or other agreed documentation. Staff are required to provide a funeral or death notice if taking compassionate leave following a death of their immediate family member or household Community service leave Jury service leave: If an employee is absent because of jury service in relation to a particular jury service summons for a period, or a number of periods, or more than 10 days in total, Ermha is required to pay the employee make-up pay for the first 10 days of absence. Make-up pay is the difference between any jury service pay the employee receives (excluding any expense-related allowances) and the employee s base rate of pay Notice: If staff apply for community service leave notice must be provided to Ermha as soon as practicable (which may be a time after the leave has started); and must advise Ermha of the period, or expected period, of the leave. Other than jury service (as above), community service leave is unpaid Evidence: Staff accessing community service leave must provide evidence that the absence is because the employee has been or will be engaging in an eligible community service activity Long Service Leave (LSL) Entitlement to LSL: An employee is entitled to take LSL after 10 years of continuous employment with Ermha. An employee ceasing employment after at least seven years of continuous employment is entitled to be paid for LSL (regardless of the reason for termination of employment). The commencement of LSL should be agreed between Ermha and the employee Accrual of LSL: LSL accrues at a rate of one week for each 60 weeks of employment with Ermha. The calculation of LSL is the total number of weeks employment divided by 60 and multiplied by the ordinary weekly rate of pay at the time the leave is taken, or the Page 5 of 8

6 employee ceases employment. Total weeks of service is divided by 60, then multiplied by ordinary weekly pay Taking long service leave: The date that the leave commences needs to be agreed between Ermha and the employee. Ermha encourages staff to provide at least three months notice when they wish to access leave for an extended period of over six weeks Payment of LSL: Payment during leave is at the employee s base rate of pay Ceremonial leave Entitlement to ceremonial leave: Can be taken by staff members who are required by Indigenous tradition to be absent from work for Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander ceremonial purposes. Ermha will seek to support eligible staff to take ceremonial leave as required Amount of leave: Eligible staff members are entitled up to 10 working days unpaid leave in any one year, with approval from Ermha Leave Without Pay (LWOP) Entitlement to LWOP: All staff (other than casuals) may request LWOP. LWOP may be sought by staff for a number of reasons including a planned holiday or unexpected illness (where other leave entitlements have been exhausted) Notice: Staff are requested to provide at least three months notice when requesting extended periods of planned leave (beyond six weeks). Unplanned leave may be requested on an as needs basis Approval: Approval of LWOP is at the discretion of the Director who will determine the conditions under which it will be taken. All annual leave must be taken prior to LWOP being approved Managers will ensure that all staff are aware of their rights and responsibilities under this policy and procedure, and that these responsibilities are met Extended Leave for 12 months or more staff on extended leave for a continuous period of 12 months or more residing in a country or countries other than Australia, must complete an International Police Check on their return to Ermha. 5. PROCEDURE 5.1. All staff will apply for the following types of leave through the My Staff Info system, through the leave management or allowances tab: Annual Leave Personal/carer s leave Compassionate leave LSL Study leave 5.2. Managers / supervisors will respond to all leave requests through My Staff Info within 10 working days or prior to the following pay cycle. Page 6 of 8

7 5.3. All staff will, if planning leave in excess of six weeks, submit their request through My Staff Info with at least 12 weeks notice All staff will, in the event of unplanned leave (personal / carers leave), call their supervisor prior to the commencement of their rostered hours to advise that they will be unable to attend work on that day and communicate their intended return date All staff will apply for LWOP in writing. This request must be submitted to their direct supervisor (with a copy to their Manager). The request must include proposed dates and reason for LWOP being sought Managers / supervisors will provide a written response to all requests for LWOP within 15 working days. The response will state whether the request has been granted or refused and state any rationale for refusal All managers and staff will seek to communicate effectively and in a time efficient manner where possible, all matters relating to leave and leave requests In the event that there is a dispute whereby a solution cannot be reached between a staff member and their direct supervisor, a meeting can be arranged with the Director and HR to seek resolution. 6. FORMS AND ATTACHMENTS Nil 7. RELATED DOCUMENTS HR 315 Work Life Balance Policy and Procedure HR 319 Parental Leave Policy and Procedure HR 320 Study Leave Policy and Procedure 8. REFERENCES AND LEGISLATION Community service leave and the National Employment Standards Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services (SCHADS) Industry Award 2010 Fair Work Act 2009 Long Service Leave Act VERSION CONTROL VERSION NO. DATE APPROVED: SHORT DESCRIPTION OF AMENDMENT DATE TO BE REVIEWED: Page 7 of 8

8 1. New Policy 01/09/ /01/2014 Amended 4.2.3, 4.3.3, 4.4.4, 5.4 based on feedback 01/01/ /05/2014 Amended 4.2.5, to reflect NES 01/01/ /11/2015 Amended (in bold) to reflect Leadership decision 01/11/2017 Page 8 of 8