Leave Entitlements for Employees
Recreational Leave
A public service officer or temporary employee engaged under section 148(2)(a) of the Public Service Act 2008 (referred
to as ‘employee’ in this schedule) is entitled to recreation leave or annual leave as provided in the Directive 10/13 –
Recreation and Long Service Leave.
Who does it apply to?
This applies to:
 public service officers
 temporary employees engaged under section 148(2)(a) of the Public Service Act 2008
 general employees engaged under section 147(2)(a) of the Public Service Act 2008 where indicated in Schedule
B.
This directive does not apply to:
 employees engaged on a casual basis under sections 147(2)(b) and 148(2)(b) of the Public Service Act 2008; or
 state school teachers employed by the Department under the Teachers Award – State 2003 or Community
Teachers, Assistant Teachers - Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Community Schools Award - State 2003.
What you need to know
Definitions
For the purposes of this module, the term recreation leave will be used to mean both recreation and annual leave.
Casual staff do not accrue an entitlement to recreation leave, but receive a loading in their remuneration as
compensation.
Part-time employees accrue recreation leave on a proportional basis to that of full-time staff.
For the purposes of this module, the term ‘state school teacher’ refers to teachers employed under the Teachers Award –
State 2003 or Community Teachers, Assistant Teachers - Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Community Schools Award State 2003.
Broad overview
An employee proceeding on a period of recreation leave does not receive payment in advance for the leave. However,
an advance can be requested and approved by the employee's manager if the non-payment of an advance will cause
hardship to the employee or if the employee intends to travel overseas during the period of the leave.
Employees have their recreation leave entitlement debited by two days during the period between Christmas Day and
New Year's Day when not required to work due to the compulsory closure of Government establishments over this period.
However, with the agreement of their manager, an employee may choose to use normal accumulated (ADO/TOIL) hours
for this closure in lieu of recreation leave. The appropriate human resources office should be advised of such
arrangements.
Officers other than state school teachers
Where an officer is required to work temporarily for a continuous period of more than three months in a location with a
different accrual rate to the officer's normal headquarters, the accrual rate is changed from the date the officer
commences at the temporary location.
Uncontrolled copy. Refer to the Department of Education and Training Policy and Procedure Register at http://ppr.det.qld.gov.au
to ensure you have the most current version of this document.
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Officers other than teachers, temporary employees appointed under s148(2) (a) and general employees engaged under
s147 (2) (a) of the Public Service Act 2008 may seek to have recreation leave at half pay.
State school teachers
State school teachers do not accrue recreation leave but are granted concessional leave during school vacation periods.
However, state school teachers who work temporarily in non-teaching roles qualify to take recreation leave in accordance
with the provisions of this module and at times mutually convenient to them and their supervisor.
State school teachers have a notional entitlement to four weeks annual leave that accrues progressively throughout the
year. A loading of 17.5% is paid on this notional allocation in December of each year.
When a state school teacher ceases employment they are entitled to a lump sum on termination payment (salary and
loading) based on the number of days from the start of the school year for which they have been paid. The salary
component of this payment is reduced by the number of school vacation days that have occurred during the period.
State school teachers appointed permanently to public service positions
A teacher appointed to a public service position accrues recreation leave effective from the first day of the school year in
which appointed to that position. However, if the state school teacher takes up duty in the public service position during
the summer vacation, leave accrues from the commencement date.
No adjustment is made against recreation leave for any school vacation taken prior to appointment in the public service
position.
No waiting period applies to the taking of leave and, subject to Departmental convenience, leave may be granted in
broken periods of not less than one whole working day.
Public servants appointed to state school teaching positions
A public servant who has been appointed to a teaching position accrues recreation leave up to the date of ceasing duty in
the public service position.
Arrangements should be made to exhaust all public service recreation leave prior to taking up duty in the teaching
position.
If special circumstances exist that prevent the taking of all accrued recreation leave prior to commencement as a teacher,
the teacher may apply to take the leave at a time mutually convenient to them and the Department.
No pro-rata adjustment is made to the summer vacation for those who commence duty in teaching positions prior to the
end of a school year.
State school teachers temporarily engaged in public service positions (including teachers seconded
as Education Officers (Special Duties) EOSD)
Short periods during the one calendar year
A state school teacher who is temporarily engaged in a public service position or as an EOSD for a period of less than 12
months, and who returns to teaching duties prior to or by the end of the school year should not be granted recreation
leave during the temporary engagement period.
Leave cannot be taken during any school vacations that occur whilst employed in a public service or EOSD position.
Upon return to teaching duties after less than 12 months, the teacher is entitled to full payment for the summer vacation.
Uncontrolled copy. Refer to the Department of Education and Training Policy and Procedure Register at http://ppr.det.qld.gov.au
to ensure you have the most current version of this document.
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Leave for periods other than above
A state school teacher who is temporarily employed in a public service position or as an EOSD for a period in excess of
12 months and/or one whose duties in the position continues over the summer vacation accrues recreation leave effective
from the date of taking up duty in that position.
The recreation leave accumulates at the rate applicable to officers.
No waiting period applies to the taking of leave and, subject to Departmental convenience, leave may be granted in
broken periods of not less than one whole working day.
All recreation leave accrued up to the date of ceasing duty in the public service or EOSD position should be exhausted
prior to returning to teaching duties. If special circumstances exist that prevent the taking of all accrued recreation leave
prior to the return to teaching, the teacher may apply to take the leave at a time mutually convenient to them and the
Department.
No pro-rata adjustment is made for the summer vacation period for those who return to teaching prior to or by the end of a
school year.
Public servants temporarily engaged in teaching positions
Public servants who work temporarily in teaching positions under the Teachers Award State - 2003 do not accrue
recreation leave during the teaching period but are entitled to leave during school vacation periods. However, if there is
no school vacation period during the time of the temporary engagement normal recreation leave accruals would apply.
Similarly, if the school vacation days are less than the number of recreation leave days that would normally accrue, the
balance is credited to the public servant's recreation leave account.
As it is not departmentally convenient for teachers to take leave outside normal school vacation periods, accrued
recreation leave would not normally be granted to public servants while they are working temporarily in teaching positions.
However, if special circumstances exist they may apply to take some leave at a time mutually convenient to them and the
Department.
Teacher aides
A teacher aide is entitled to four weeks Annual Leave each year. All teacher aides need to take this leave during the
summer vacation, beginning the first week of the six-week summer vacation, or the beginning of the second week for
schools where the summer vacation is of seven weeks duration.
The Annual Leave is exclusive of any statutory holidays that occur during the period.
Payment is calculated at the employee's ordinary award rate of pay at the time of proceeding on leave and in accordance
with the provisions of the relevant award and/or enterprise agreement.
If the services of a teacher aide conclude prior to the Annual Leave period, the employee receives a cash equivalent of
the annual leave entitlement to the date of separation.
An application for annual leave is not required. Teacher aides may wish to ensure that their regional office is aware of a
current vacation address for payment purposes, particularly those employed in schools that have a seven-week vacation
period.
Cleaners
Cleaners are entitled to four weeks annual leave on full pay each year, exclusive of statutory holidays.
The majority of cleaners are required to take all accrued annual leave during the summer vacation. Those cleaners who
are required to provide year round service take leave at a time mutually convenient to them and their manager.
In situations where a cleaner has not worked a full year and is therefore not entitled to four weeks annual leave, action
may be taken to grant all accrued Annual Leave and the balance may be granted as special leave without pay.
Uncontrolled copy. Refer to the Department of Education and Training Policy and Procedure Register at http://ppr.det.qld.gov.au
to ensure you have the most current version of this document.
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Where a cleaner takes special leave without pay during the summer vacation because of insufficient accrued annual
leave and public holidays occur during that period of leave without pay, payment is made for those public holidays.
Recreation Leave – Half Pay
Subject to service delivery requirements and financial considerations, an application may be approved to take recreation
leave at half pay. As school based non-teaching staff are required to take their recreation leave during vacation periods
(normally the summer vacation period) access to half-pay recreation leave would only be approved outside holiday
periods in exceptional circumstances.
Related links
Directive 10/13 – Recreation and Long Service Leave.
Contacts
Employees requiring further information should seek advice from human resource personnel in their regional office,
Institute Human Resources Unit or the Workforce Relations Unit, Human Resources Branch.
Uncontrolled copy. Refer to the Department of Education and Training Policy and Procedure Register at http://ppr.det.qld.gov.au
to ensure you have the most current version of this document.
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