There are a range of flexible leave options that your organisation could consider as part of your strategy to recruit and retain your more experienced workers.
Benefits to employers
- Better retention of valued staff and a reduction in labour turnover, which eases labour shortages as well as reducing recruitment and training costs.
- Reduced absenteeism when employees can combine work with time off to deal with personal responsibilities.
- Higher productivity, motivation and commitment from staff.
- Extra appeal as a ‘preferred employer’.
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Benefits to employees
- Opportunities to pursue other responsibilities or interests and return to work.
- Increased productivity and job satisfaction resulting from greater flexibility.
- Managing careers more effectively by postponing retirement and retaining job security if they need to take additional time away from work.
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Tips for implementing flexible leave options
You can introduce flexible leave options into your employment policy and industrial arrangements such as workplace agreements by:
- allowing all employees to access flexible leave options,
- establishing rights and processes for applying for leave.
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Purchased annual leave
All full-time and part-time employees are entitled to annual leave.
Full-time employees accrue the equivalent of four weeks of paid annual leave each year (except for some shift workers who are entitled to five weeks’ paid annual leave per annum).
Part-time employees accrue paid annual leave for each completed four-week period of continuous service.
Employers and employees can use agreements to provide for a higher amount of paid annual leave if this is the preferred arrangement.
Within the nominated 12-month period, staff are able to apply to have up to four weeks additional annual leave, with a proportionate reduction in salary spread over the full year. In other words, they get an opportunity to ‘purchase’ additional leave.
Where employees purchase an additional four weeks leave (a total of eight weeks leave), this is sometimes referred to as 48/52 leave, as the salary paid to them will be 48/52 of their full-time salary.
Flexible leave options such as purchased leave helps staff maintain wellbeing and enthusiasm and provides more time for them to attend to family or caring responsibilities, or to take up new activities leading up to their retirement.
Read more: How to introduce a purchased annual leave clause into your workplace agreements
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Sabbaticals
Sabbatical leave is an extended period away from work to pursue study or other developmental opportunities to maintain motivation and expertise.
Some organisations are willing to pay employees whilst on a sabbatical. Others are happy to let the employee take the sabbatical, but will not provide funding. Alternatively, sabbaticals can be paid for with purchased annual leave.
With purchased leave arrangements, a staff member may opt to fund a sabbatical by, for example, being paid four years salary over a period of five years, and taking the fifth year out of the workplace. However, in any 12-month period, an employee’s salary must at least equal the minimum amount owing to them under the Australian Fair Pay and Conditions Standard.
Staff on an extended form of leave should be kept informed of developments and decisions regarding their workplace, perhaps through newsletters or emails.
Read more: How to introduce a sabbatical clause into your workplace agreements
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Job swap arrangements
A job swap is a skills sharing arrangement between two organisations where an employee transfers to another organisation, for say six months, while still an employee of the original organisation.
On returning to their workplace, the employee shares the skills and knowledge they have learnt with their colleagues.
Read more: How to introduce a job swap clause into your workplace agreements
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Volunteering leave
Some employees who are volunteers with state emergency services, country fire authorities and other volunteer emergency services have certain leave entitlements for volunteering in workplace agreements. Whether or not a volunteer receives paid leave to undertake their duties is a matter for agreement between the employer and employee.
Many ‘preferred employers’ allow their staff to take leave (between one to five days per year) to undertake volunteering with other community-based activities. Another option is for employees to take time off in lieu.
Defence force reserves are provided with certain leave entitlements under law.
Read more: How to introduce a volunteering clause into your workplace agreements
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Personal leave
Personal leave can cover all types of leave for staff, including carer’s leave, study leave etc.
Under the Workplace Relations Act 
, the minimum entitlement to personal/carer’s leave consists of the following.
- Ten days of paid personal/carer’s leave per annum for full-time employees (which accrues if it is not used), of which ten days can be used as carer’s leave in a 12-month period.
- Pro rata entitlement to paid personal/carer’s leave for part-time employees.
- Two days of unpaid carer’s leave per occasion for casual employees and regular employees who have exhausted their paid personal/carer’s leave.
- For full-time and part-time employees, two days of paid compassionate leave per occasion, which can be taken upon the death of a member of the employee’s immediate family or household, or to spend time with a seriously ill, injured or dying person who is a member of the employee’s immediate family or household.
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