Family and Domestic Violence Leave Policy in Queensland: What Employers and Employees Need to Know
Domestic and family violence is a confronting reality that affects thousands of Australians each year, and its effects do not stop at the workplace door. Employees experiencing family and domestic violence may need time away from work to protect themselves or their family, attend appointments or make practical arrangements.
Paid domestic and family violence leave provides employees with time to address these circumstances without losing income. However, the applicable rules can depend on whether the employee is covered by the national or Queensland workplace relations system.
At Omnia Legal, we assist individuals and businesses in understanding their rights and responsibilities when domestic and family violence affects the workplace. Here is what Queensland employers and employees need to know.
What Is Family and Domestic Violence Leave?
Domestic and family violence leave is a specific workplace entitlement for employees experiencing domestic or family violence.
Under the national workplace relations system, family and domestic violence includes violent, threatening or abusive behaviour by an employee’s current or former spouse or de facto partner, the employee’s close relative, a household member or a current or former intimate partner. It may involve physical violence, sexual violence, verbal abuse, threats, coercive control, financial abuse or other controlling behaviour that causes harm or fear.
Definitions under Queensland legislation differ and should be considered according to the workplace relations system that applies.
Family and domestic violence leave may allow an employee to take time away from work to:
Seek medical or mental health support
Attend counselling or other support appointments
Speak with police or access other police services
Consult legal professionals
Prepare for or attend court proceedings
Arrange alternative accommodation
Organise childcare or schooling
Make other arrangements for their own safety or the safety of a family member
Domestic and Family Violence Leave Entitlements in Queensland
Queensland employees may be covered by either the national workplace relations system or the Queensland state industrial relations system.
Employees Covered by the Fair Work Act 2009
Most private sector employees in Queensland are covered by the national workplace relations system and the National Employment Standards.
Eligible employees can access paid family and domestic violence leave regardless of whether they work for a large organisation or a small business employer.
Employees are entitled to 10 days of paid leave each year. This entitlement:
Applies to full-time, part-time and casual employees
Is available in full from the employee’s first day of work
Renews on the employee’s work anniversary
Does not accumulate from year to year
Is separate from annual leave, sick leave and personal or carer’s leave
The entitlement has applied to employees of non-small business employers since 1 February 2023 and employees of small business employers since 1 August 2023.
To access paid family and domestic violence leave, an employee must be needing time to deal with the impact of the violence, and it must be impractical to do so outside their work hours.
The 10 days of paid leave is a minimum entitlement. An award, enterprise agreement, employment contract or employer’s policy may provide additional or more favourable leave.
Employees and employers can find further information about the national entitlement through the Fair Work Ombudsman.
Employees Covered by the Industrial Relations Act 2016 (Qld)
The Queensland state industrial relations system generally covers Queensland Government and local government employees, as well as employees of certain other state-system employers.
Under the Industrial Relations Act 2016 (Qld), an employee, including a casual employee, may be entitled to 10 days of paid domestic and family violence leave each year if:
They have experienced domestic violence; and
They need to take leave as a result of that violence.
The entitlement does not accumulate from year to year. If the employee exhausts their paid entitlement, they may take additional unpaid leave with their employer’s agreement.
The legislation that applies will depend on the employee’s workplace relations system. An award, enterprise agreement, employment contract or domestic violence leave policy may also provide additional or more favourable entitlements.
Who Is Eligible for Paid Domestic and Family Violence Leave?
Paid domestic and family violence leave is available to eligible:
Full-time employees
Part-time employees
Casual employees
Employees do not need to complete a minimum period of employment before accessing the entitlement. Under the National Employment Standards, the full 10-day entitlement is available from the first day of employment.
Employers must not take adverse action against an employee because they have a workplace right to access domestic and family violence leave. Any information disclosed by an employee should also be managed carefully, sensitively and confidentially.
What Can Domestic and Family Violence Leave Be Used For?
The leave can be used for a range of purposes, outlined below.
Attending medical, counselling or mental health appointments
Consulting a lawyer or domestic violence service
Speaking with police or attending a police interview
Applying for or attending proceedings concerning a protection order
Attending other court proceedings
Moving into alternative accommodation
Organising new childcare or schooling arrangements
Making safety arrangements for themselves or their dependants
Under Queensland legislation, leave may be taken for part of a day. Under the National Employment Standards, leave can be taken as one continuous period, separate periods of one or more days or, where the employer and employee agree, a period of less than one day.
How Is Family and Domestic Violence Leave Paid?
Under the National Employment Standards, employees taking paid family and domestic violence leave must generally be paid at their full rate of pay for the hours they would ordinarily have worked.
Depending on the employee’s employment arrangements, this may include:
Their base rate of pay
Incentive payments and bonuses
Loadings
Monetary allowances
Overtime and penalty rates
Other separately identifiable amounts
A casual employee is paid for the hours they were rostered to work during the leave period, including applicable casual loading and other relevant payments.
Paid family and domestic violence leave is a separate minimum entitlement. It is not deducted from an employee’s annual leave, sick and carer’s leave or other personal leave balance.
Employers must also comply with special pay slip requirements intended to protect employees’ safety and privacy. Paid family and domestic violence leave must not be identified as such on a pay slip.
Notice and Evidence Requirements
Employees should notify their employer that they need to take family and domestic violence leave as soon as practicable. Depending on the circumstances, notice may be given after the leave has started.
An employer may request reasonable evidence that would satisfy a reasonable person that the employee took the leave to deal with the impact of family and domestic violence. Depending on the situation, appropriate evidence may include:
A statutory declaration
A document issued by police
A court document
Evidence from a domestic and family violence support service
A document from a doctor, psychologist, nurse or social worker
Correspondence from a lawyer
Employers should avoid requesting more information than is reasonably necessary to establish the employee’s entitlement.
Confidentiality and Employee Privacy
An employer must take reasonable steps to keep information about an employee’s domestic and family violence situation confidential. This includes information provided when giving notice or supplying evidence.
There may be limited circumstances in which information can be disclosed, including where disclosure is required by law or necessary to protect the life, health or safety of the employee or another person.
Employers should restrict access to sensitive information and consider how workplace records, rosters, contact details and communications are stored. Care should also be taken to ensure information about family and domestic violence leave does not appear on the employee’s pay slip.
Best Practices for Employers
Supporting an employee experiencing domestic or family violence involves more than processing a leave request. Employers should have clear procedures that protect the employee’s privacy, safety and workplace rights.
A clear domestic violence leave policy can help managers support employees experiencing family and domestic violence while meeting the organisation’s legal obligations.
Practical steps may include:
Updating workplace policies to reflect current leave entitlements
Training managers and HR staff to respond appropriately to disclosures
Limiting access to confidential employee information
Providing employees with information about internal and external support services
Considering requests for flexible working arrangements
Reviewing work locations, rosters and contact details where there are safety concerns
Developing an individual workplace safety plan where appropriate
Reviewing workplace health and safety risks associated with domestic and family violence
Any workplace safety plan should consider the affected employee’s circumstances, as well as potential risks to other employees and people in the workplace.
Employees experiencing family or domestic violence may also be eligible to request flexible working arrangements under the Fair Work Act 2009. Employers should consider each request according to the applicable legal requirements and the employee’s individual circumstances.
Where to Find Immediate Support
If you are experiencing domestic or family violence, confidential support is available:
DVConnect Womensline: 1800 811 811, 24 hours a day
DVConnect Mensline: 1800 600 636
1800RESPECT: 1800 737 732, 24 hours a day
Queensland Police: 131 444 for non-urgent police assistance.
If you or your children are in immediate danger, call Triple Zero (000).
How Can Omnia Legal Assist?
Domestic and family violence leave provides important financial and workplace protection at a time when an employee may need to make urgent decisions about their safety and future.
Omnia Legal can provide confidential advice to employees about their legal options when domestic or family violence affects their work or family circumstances. We can also advise employers about minimum leave entitlements, workplace policies, confidentiality obligations and appropriate responses to employee disclosures.
Contact Omnia Legal on (07) 5415 0248 or submit a confidential enquiry through our contact page.
This article provides general information for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Domestic and family violence leave entitlements can depend on the workplace relations system and the employee’s individual circumstances. Employers and employees should obtain advice about their particular situation.