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Leave Loading Calculator

Work out annual leave loading on a period of leave. Loading is an extra amount paid on top of base pay when some employees take annual leave. It is commonly 17.5%, but it is not a legal minimum and does not apply to everyone.

Your details

Leave loading

$931.00

Base pay for the leave
$5,320.00
Loading at 17.5%
$931.00
Total paid for the leave
$6,251.00
Extra per leave hour
$6.12

Leave loading is not a National Employment Standards entitlement. It applies only where an award or agreement provides it, and some awards pay the higher of the loading or your usual shift loading.

Worked examples, with the arithmetic.

The same sums the tool runs, on real figures. Every number below is computed by the tested engine from the published rates, so the prose and the tool can never disagree.

What is leave loading on four weeks at $35 an hour?

152 hours x $35            = $5,320.00 base pay
$5,320.00 x 17.5%            = $931.00 loading
total paid for the leave      = $6,251.00

Four weeks of leave on a 38-hour week is 152 hours. At $35 an hour that is $5,320.00 of base pay, and 17.5% loading adds $931.00, taking the total to $6,251.00. Loading applies only where your award or agreement provides it.

What is the loading worth per hour of leave?

$35 x 17.5%              = $6.13 extra per leave hour

On a $35 base rate the loading is $6.13 for every hour of leave taken, so the effective rate while on leave is $41.13. That is why taking leave can pay more than working the same hours at ordinary rates.

Is this accurate, and how does it work?

The method is published rather than described. Nothing here is a black box, and the limits are listed as plainly as the workings.

  1. 1Start from base pay for the leave. Leave is paid at your base rate for the hours taken. Overtime, penalties, allowances and bonuses are excluded unless the award says otherwise.
  2. 2Apply the loading rate from your award. 17.5% is the common figure and the one Fair Work uses in its own worked example, but the rate and whether it applies at all come from your award or agreement.
  3. 3Check the higher-of rule. Some awards pay shiftworkers the higher of the leave loading or the shift loading they would have received. Where that applies, the larger of the two is paid, not both.

What this does not cover.

  • It does not tell you whether your award provides leave loading. Check your award or agreement, or use the Fair Work pay calculator.
  • It does not apply the higher-of rule against a shift loading, which some awards require for shiftworkers.
  • It calculates the loading amount, not the PAYG withheld on it.
  • Termination payouts can be taxed under separate rules and are not modelled here.

Where these figures come from.

Every rate this site uses is listed on the Methodology page.

Common questions.

What is annual leave loading?

It is an extra payment made to some employees when they take annual leave, on top of their base pay for those hours. It originated to compensate for the overtime and penalty rates a worker loses while on leave.

Is leave loading 17.5% for everyone?

No. 17.5% is the most common rate in modern awards and is the figure Fair Work uses in its own example, but leave loading is not part of the National Employment Standards. Whether you get it, and at what rate, depends entirely on your award, enterprise agreement or contract.

Do I get leave loading when I leave a job?

If you would have been paid loading while taking the leave, it must be included in the payout of unused annual leave when your employment ends. That applies even if an award, agreement or contract says otherwise.

Is leave loading taxed differently?

Leave loading paid while you are employed is ordinary income and is taxed as part of that pay. Amounts paid out on termination can be taxed under different rules. This page calculates the loading itself, not the withholding on it.

Related pages.

  • Annual Leave CalculatorWork out annual leave accrued in hours, days and dollars under the four-week National Employment Standards entitlement.
  • Penalty RatesWhat penalty rates are, and the Saturday, Sunday and public holiday percentages three awards actually publish, read from the award text.
  • Hourly Rate CalculatorConvert an hourly rate to a weekly, fortnightly or annual salary and back again, with take-home pay after income tax and the Medicare levy.
  • Award Pay RatesModern award minimum pay rates by industry, how classification levels and pay points work, and how casual loading and penalty rates change what you earn.

Every calculator on this site is listed on the Wage Calculator page.