Paid for a public holiday you don't work? The otherwise working day test
If a public holiday falls on a day you would otherwise have worked, you get the day off and at least your relevant daily pay: what you would have earned that day, or average daily pay where that applies. If you would not have worked that day, no pay is owed. Answer the questions to see the law's factors and the pay.
Worked out for the example. Change the boxes to make it yours.
| Your employment agreement | Does not fix the days (as agreed, or when work is available) |
|---|---|
| The roster | Rostered, or would have been |
| Would you have worked, but for the holiday? | Yes |
| Your work pattern | Worked a Monday in 7 of the last 8 weeks |
| Otherwise working day? | Your answers point to yes |
| Relevant daily pay: 7.5 hours at $26.50 | $198.75 |
| Average daily pay: $40,560 over 208 days, for comparison | $195.00 |
| Pay for the holiday, at least (relevant daily pay) | $198.75 |
- If you would have worked any part of Monday 26 October 2026, it counts as an otherwise working day (section 12(4)).
- From 6 August 2028, under the Employment Leave Act 2026, an unworked public holiday that is an otherwise working day is paid by the hour: the leave payment rate for each hour you would have worked.
Nothing to save from this one. Your Timesheets, free on every plan, keeps a dated record of every shift: the work pattern the otherwise working day test looks at.
See Your TimesheetsPaid when it is a day you would have worked
Section 49 of the Holidays Act 2003 says that if you do not work on a public holiday and the day would otherwise be a working day for you, your employer must pay you at least your relevant daily pay or average daily pay for that day. You also have the day off. If the holiday is not a day you would otherwise have worked, Employment New Zealand says no pay is owed for it, though an employer can choose to pay. This applies to casual and part-time employees in the same way as full-time ones: what matters is whether you would have worked that day. The pay is due in the pay period the holiday falls in.
The otherwise working day test
When it is not clear, section 12 says you and your employer weigh these factors to reach agreement: your employment agreement; your work patterns; whether you work only when work is available; the rosters; what you and your employer could both reasonably expect; and whether, but for the public holiday, you would have worked that day. Employment New Zealand says no single factor can be relied on alone, so the calculator lists your answers and says only which way they point. If you would otherwise have worked any part of the day, it counts (section 12(4)), and an employer cannot take you off the roster to avoid the holiday. If you cannot agree, a Labour Inspector can decide (section 13). Our glossary entry on the otherwise working day works through an alternating roster.
Relevant daily pay or average daily pay
Relevant daily pay (section 9) is what you would have received had you worked that day, including overtime and incentive payments such as commission you would have earned, and the cash value of board or lodgings, but not your employer's superannuation contribution. Average daily pay (section 9A) is your gross earnings for the 52 calendar weeks before the end of the last pay period, divided by the whole or part days you worked or were on paid holidays or paid leave in that time. Your employer may use it only if relevant daily pay is not possible or practicable to work out, or your daily pay varies within the pay period the holiday falls in. Employment New Zealand says that if you have worked there for less than 52 weeks, it is worked out over the weeks you have been employed.
Weekend holidays, working the day, and 2028
A holiday that falls on a Saturday or Sunday moves to the Monday (or Tuesday over Christmas and New Year) only for people who would not otherwise have worked that weekend day (Holidays Act 2003, sections 45 and 45A), so choose the date that is your holiday. If you work the holiday instead, the public holiday pay calculator works out time and a half and the alternative holiday. From 6 August 2028 the Employment Leave Act 2026 pays an unworked public holiday on an otherwise working day by the hour, at the leave payment rate for each hour you would have worked; until then, the rules above apply. Our article on the Employment Leave Act 2026 covers the rest.
Questions
Do casuals get paid public holidays in NZ?
Yes, if the public holiday falls on a day the casual employee would otherwise have worked. Then the day is paid at relevant daily pay or average daily pay. If it is not a day they would have worked, no pay is owed for it.
Do I get paid for a public holiday if I'm part-time?
Only if the holiday falls on a day you would otherwise have worked. A part-time employee who works Tuesdays to Thursdays is not paid for a Monday holiday, but is paid for a Wednesday one.
What is an otherwise working day?
A day you would have worked if it were not a public holiday. Where it is unclear, the Holidays Act 2003 lists the factors to weigh: your agreement, your work pattern, the roster, reasonable expectations, and whether you would have worked but for the holiday.
How is pay for a public holiday I don't work calculated?
At least your relevant daily pay, what you would have earned that day, or your average daily pay: gross earnings for the last 52 weeks divided by the days you worked or were on paid leave (Holidays Act 2003, sections 9, 9A and 49).
Can my employer take me off the roster for a public holiday?
Not to avoid paying for it. Employment New Zealand says an employer cannot take an employee off the roster on a public holiday that would otherwise be a working day for them, to avoid the holiday's entitlements.
Sources
- Holidays Act 2003, ss 9, 9A, 12, 13, 45, 45A and 49.
- Employment New Zealand: public holiday pay.
- Employment New Zealand: managing public holidays as an employer.
- Employment New Zealand: public holidays and anniversary dates.
- Employment Leave Act 2026, in force 6 August 2028.
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