All employees (including part-time and casual employees) are entitled to 5 days unpaid family and domestic violence leave each year. The entitlement to unpaid family and domestic violence leave comes from the National Employment Standards (NES).
Family and domestic violence means violent, threatening or other abusive behaviour by an employee’s close relative that:
- seeks to coerce or control the employee
- causes them harm or fear.
A close relative is:
- an employee’s:
- spouse or former spouse
- de facto partner or former de facto partner
- child
- parent
- grandparent
- grandchild
- sibling
- an employee’s current or former spouse or de facto partner’s child, parent, grandparent, grandchild or sibling, or
- a person related to the employee according to Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander kinship rules.
Entitlement to unpaid leave
All employees (including part-time and casual employees) are entitled to 5 days unpaid family and domestic violence leave each year.
The entitlement to unpaid family and domestic violence leave comes from the NES. The entitlement still applies to employees covered by an award.
Registered and enterprise agreements
Employees covered by registered agreements, enterprise awards or state reference public sector awards may be entitled to other paid or unpaid entitlements in their award or agreement that they can access in these circumstances.
If the award or agreement provides less than the minimum entitlement in the NES, the NES entitlement still applies.
Workplace policies
Some businesses may provide paid or unpaid family and domestic violence leave entitlements in their employment contracts or workplace policies. The amount of leave and pay entitlements will depend on the contract or policy.
If an employment contract or workplace policy provides less than the minimum entitlement in the NES, the NES entitlement still applies.
