HR/IR Solutions Annual Leave Policy Guide
As explained in a previous article, all employees are guaranteed annual leave through the National Employment Standards (NES). It is important that you are able to reasonably control how annual leave works in your workplace.
You know what your business requires, and you need to be able to implement appropriate policies to continue its proper functioning. Many businesses require a Christmas shut-down period, and therefore need their staff to take annual leave during this period of time. Other businesses require a certain number of staff to be in the office at any one time, and therefore Annual leave can not be taken by many people at once.
Both of the above scenarios, and any other scenario particular to your business can be solved by implementing a correctly written and formatted annual leave policy. An annual leave policy should include:
1. A recognition of the relevant laws.
These laws will alway be the NES, but may include your employee’s modern award. This will depend on the employee’s position and your particular field of work.
2. Rules surrounding how leave can be taken.
You can require certain rules surrounding leave. One such rule may be that your employee will need to apply more than one month in advance if they require five or more consecutive days of annual leave. You should specify that all leave will be considered based on the needs and requirements of the business.
3. Rules about when leave must be taken.
If your business has a shut down period, such as a Christmas shut-down, you may require that your employees take annual leave during this period of time if it is reasonable. Problems may arise such as the employee not having the required annual leave at Christmas, but the solution to this problem can be specified within the policy
For an annual leave policy tailored to your business’ needs, contact John Morrissey.
