Time Tracking the Aussie Way: Everything Employers Need To Know About Working Hours in Australia

In this article, you’ll learn everything there is to know about Australian working hours in 2024, from the legal framework surrounding standard working hours and time tracking to practical implementation options.

When it comes to the Down Under, effectively managing time tracking and overtime policies isn’t just about good business practice – it’s an actual legal requirement. Running a business in Australia can be incredibly fruitful, but many employers may find navigating the country’s legalities of working hours rather tricky. Thus, staying informed about regulations regarding standard working hours, overtime, and breaks is essential for businesses to remain compliant. More than staying on the right side of the law, it helps increase workforce productivity and enhance task management.

In this article, we’ll take a deep dive into the legal framework surrounding Australian working hours and time tracking in 2024 and explore practical implementation options by taking a closer look at how Kickidler can help businesses manage employees while they’re on the clock.

Understanding Australian Labor Laws

To ensure efficient and seamless time tracking, it’s crucial to have a proper understanding of the legal landscape. Employee rights and employer responsibilities in Australia are established through labor laws, overseen by the Fair Work Commission. And with these laws undergoing frequent revisions and updates, it’s imperative for employers to be well-versed in them.

Just last year, significant changes to the Professional Employees Award 2020 in relation to coverage of employees, overtime, penalty rates and associated record keeping obligations came into operation. These changes to the Award that covers a wide range of employees working in IT, medical research, quality auditing, engineering, and telecommunications took effect on September 16, 2023.

As a whole, this amendment to the Australian law required that records be kept for time spent and overtime or TOIL be compensated for time past ordinary hours (38-hour work week). Salary-based organizations or those businesses that hadn’t been tracking timesheets were required to start tracking ordinary and overtime hours.

Another striking example of Australian legislation’s suppleness came earlier this week, with the country’s Prime Minister and key Senate crossbenchers endorsing the proposal for workers to have the right to disconnect and not answer employers’ calls or emails outside of paid hours.

Frequently Asked Questions regarding Working Hours in Australia

What Is Considered a Standard Work Week in Australia? 

Standard work week in Australia for full-time employees is 38 hours (as defined by the National Employment Standards under the Fair Work Act). These 38 hours include both active work time and authorized leave of absences, such as sick leave, public holidays, and so on. Moreover, the terms of employment and any relevant company regulations must specifically authorize a leave of absence, and the employer must approve the requested time off before a leave of absence can be taken by an employee.

Modern awards (legally binding documents outlining minimum wage pay and working conditions) and enterprise agreements (negotiated employer-employee agreement) might specify the working hours that differ from the 38-hour norm. 

Part-time employees are exempt from the 38-hour work week. The ordinary hours for them are limited to either less than 38 hours per week or their agreed-upon standard weekly working hours. 

Is There a Legal Limit to Working Hours in Australia?

Yes. The legal limit for full-time employees is 38 hours. Employers can’t force employees to work more unless the additional hours are deemed “reasonable.” At the same time, employees have the right to refuse working overtime if they find the reason behind these additional hours to be unreasonable.

The Fair Work Commission outlines several factors to assess the reasonableness of additional working hours:

• employee health and safety (additional hours shouldn’t create risk of burnout, fatigue or injury);
• compensation for additional hours (such as overtime payments, penalty pay rates or other forms of compensation for working extra hours);
• employee’s persona circumstances (such as family responsibilities, existing commitments, and personal wellbeing);
• notice of additional hours (reasonable notice should be provided by employers when requesting employees to work additional hours);
• industry standards (typical working patterns within the specific industry should be taken into consideration);
• employee’s role and responsibilities (the nature of the job and level of responsibility can influence how reasonable additional hours are);
• needs of the workplace (business needs, while important, shouldn’t come at the expense of employee wellbeing);
• averaging provisions (some awards or agreements might include averaging provisions that allow for fluctuations in working hours over a specific period).

The Fair Work Ombudsman may impose fines for noncompliance with working hour laws. Dissatisfied workers can also file complaints with the FWC, which could have legal repercussions, so it is best to make every effort to comply with legal regulations.

What Averaging Agreements Are Legal in Australia?

In Australia, averaging agreements allow employers and employees to distribute work hours differently across a set period, typically exceeding a single week. These agreements can be beneficial for both parties, since they offer more flexible work arrangements. They can also be beneficial for those industries where seasonal fluctuations in workload is a typical occurrence. 

And while awards or enterprise agreements may specify different working hours than the standard 38 hours per week, what about employees who are not under enterprise agreements or awards?

Averaging arrangements with such employees can still be established – through a written agreement. Legally, the maximum for this averaging agreement is 26 weeks. Like employees under awards, the average weekly hours can’t surpass the standard limits unless deemed reasonable based on the factors we’ve mentioned earlier.

Under the Fair Work Act’s basic workplace protection rules, employers are not allowed to force an employee to enter into an averaging agreement. The Fair Work Ombudsman can file a lawsuit against an employer if they are found to be doing so.

What Is Considered Overtime in Australia?

According to the Australian government, overtime applies when employees work outside their ordinary hours that are determined by their enterprise agreement, award, registered agreement, or employment contract. 

Full-time employees are considered to be working overtime if they work:

• more than their maximum daily or weekly ordinary hours;
• beyond the spread of ordinary hours (meaning the designated timeframe within which employee’s regular work hours can fall, which is usually outlined in the employment contract) (also applies to part-time employees).

Awards, agreements, and individual contracts can specify situations where an employer can require overtime. It can be phrased as “reasonable overtime,” meaning a staff member can’t be forced to work excessive hours. Even with reasonable overtime, there is a limit to the total number of weekly hours an employee can be required to work. 

What Breaks Are Employees Entitled to in Australia?

The length, timing, and payment of breaks Australian employees are entitled to are determined by registered agreements that apply to the employee’s industry and workplace, awards, or enterprise agreements.

Three main categories that breaks in Australia fall into are as follows:

• Rest breaks (also known as “rest pauses” or “tea breaks”) offer employees a short period to rest and recharge during working hours. Employees are typically entitled to a rest break after working continuously. Such breaks are usually short, 10-20 minutes, and unpaid (however, some awards or agreements might include provisions for paid rest breaks in certain circumstances).
• Meal breaks (can also be called “lunch breaks”) give employees a longer period of uninterrupted rest to eat a proper meal. Similar to rest breaks, the employee’s award or agreement usually establish specific regulations regarding meal breaks, such as their duration, timing, and payment terms. A specific type of paid meal break is a crib break, which is designated for situations where the nature of the work might require employees to remain at their workplace and potentially resume work during their meal break. 
• Breaks between shifts ensure employees have sufficient time to rest and be prepared for their upcoming shift. A minimum amount of time off that employees must receive between the end of one shift and the start of another is often stipulated in industry-specific awards and agreements.

Options for Time Tracking in Australia in 2024

When it comes to time tracking, Australian businesses have a plethora of options tailored to the size and requirements of each business. 

Here’s a brief mention of top 3 solutions currently available on the market:

1. Kickidler: A straightforward yet effective time tracking solution that offers several advantages, which make it an appealing option for the businesses looking to stay compliant with the Australian regulation. The software typically stands out for:
   • Full-fledged time tracking
   • Limited overtime configurability
   • Productivity measurement (through continuous screenshots and real-time screen monitoring)
   • Keystroke tracking
   • Generation of a wide variety of reports on employees’ time usage and productivity levels
   • Recording time dedicated to projects and tasks 
2. Hubstaff: A simple yet powerful employee worktime tracker that especially caters to shift-based schedules. Its key functionality includes online time reporting through detailed time reports, automatically generated timesheets from digital or manual time entries, and GPS time tracking that automatically clocks employees working on location-based job sites in and out.
3. TimeCamp: A web-based feature-rich time tracking app that provides comprehensive time tracking, enabling users to monitor billable work hours and employee productivity. It offers over 50 integrations for seamless task synchronization and generates detailed time tracking reports. The software is well-suited for employers seeking productivity monitoring in combination with time tracking and payroll management. 

If you’re interested in taking a deeper dive into the world of time tracking solutions, we suggest that you check the comprehensive overview we compiled earlier this year here.

Simplifying Workforce Management & Time Tracking with Kickidler

Managing employee work hours can be complex, especially if clinging to outdated manual methods of time tracking. Adopting software that automates this process can save employers time while guaranteeing accuracy. 

Kickidler is a leading time tracking solution that simplifies workforce management, offering a range of features to streamline processes in order to help businesses stay on top of their internal workflows. It can truly revolutionize the way employers monitor and manage work hours of their workforce. 

This comprehensive software is equipped with sophisticated tools that’re designed to capture, analyze, and optimize time employees spend on tasks and projects.

Let’s cover some of Kickidler’s features in more detail:

• Automated time tracking enables employees to capture time spent on work-related tasks seamlessly. Alternatively, they can log their time entries manually by inputting start and end times or specifying the duration of the tasks.
• Real-time monitoring of work hours allows for efficient time tracking during any point of the day, providing incredibly correct, granular tracking of time employees spend working. They can view their accumulated time, remaining time for tasks and projects, as well as any deviations from planned schedule.
• Robust reporting and analytics features help gain insights into employees’ time utilization, their productivity levels, and overall project performance. 
• Notifications on violations can be configured so that when an employee approaches the overtime threshold, the system will send out alerts, notifying both said employee and the employer, thus helping businesses avoid working employees beyond legal overtime limits.
• Comprehensive Project Tracking functionality helps managers streamline workflows and organize work processes more efficiently by highlighting exactly how much time employees spend on certain tasks.

Conclusion

Now that you’ve gained an understanding of Australian legal regulations regarding working hours in 2024, the next step is to remain compliant with them. Being compliant helps you and. Adhering to legal regulations helps avoid unnecessary lawsuits, strengthens employee wellbeing by improving their work-life balance, reduces absenteeism, boosts morale, and increases productivity – which sounds like a win-win situation for both your team and your business.

Effective time tracking and compliance with labor laws are essential for businesses to succeed in Australia. No matter what solution you choose to digitize the process of time tracking in your organization, ensure its alignment with your particular needs. Staying informed, creating a concise employee attendance policy, and keeping work time records are essential for creating a compliant and productive workplace. And your choice of time tracking solution plays a pivotal role in achieving these goals.

Select sensibly, stay compliant, and let your business succeed.