Sick Leave Calculator Australia

Sick Leave Entitlements in Australia

Full-time employees in Australia are entitled to 10 days of paid personal/carer’s leave per year under the National Employment Standards (NES). This leave can be used when you are unwell or injured, or when you need to care for an immediate family member or household member who is sick. Part-time employees receive a pro-rata entitlement based on their ordinary hours.

Our sick leave calculator helps you determine how much personal leave you have accrued based on your start date and any leave already taken. Unlike annual leave, unused sick leave accumulates from year to year but is not paid out when your employment ends.

How Sick Leave Accrues

Personal/carer’s leave accrues progressively throughout the year at a rate of approximately 0.0385 hours per ordinary hour worked for full-time employees. This means you earn roughly 1 day of leave for every 26 working days. Leave begins accruing from your first day of employment and there is no cap on accumulation — some long-serving employees may have hundreds of hours of accrued sick leave.

Casual employees do not receive paid personal leave under the NES. However, they are entitled to 2 days of unpaid carer’s leave per occasion and 2 days of unpaid compassionate leave per occasion.

Evidence and Notice Requirements

You must notify your employer as soon as practicable when you need to take personal leave, and you must advise the expected duration of your absence. For absences of more than one day, or for single days that fall adjacent to weekends or public holidays, your employer may request a medical certificate or statutory declaration as evidence.

Since a landmark Fair Work Commission decision in 2019, sick leave is calculated in hours rather than days. This means if you work an 8-hour day and take one day off sick, only 8 hours are deducted from your balance — not one ‘day’ regardless of shift length. This distinction is especially important for employees who work variable hours or longer shifts. Our calculator uses the hours-based method to give you the most accurate balance.