The Mondayisation of Anzac Day does not mean two holidays

There has been some confusion as to what people do about the new phenomenon of the Mondayisation.

Remember that this year there are actually two Anzac Days for the purposes of holidays – there is Saturday April 25 and then there is Monday April 27. This is the first year that we have had this situation whereby Anzac Day is Mondayised.

There is one major principle to remember, particularly for those of you who operate on both a Saturday and a Monday. In all cases the staff only get one day as Anzac Day. That may be the Saturday or the Monday, but not both.

For those who usually work on a Saturday, then Saturday is Anzac Day (even if they also usually work on a Monday).

If those people who usually work on a Saturday actually work on the Saturday, then they get paid 1 time for the hours worked and they get a day off in lieu to be taken at a later date.

If those people who usually work on a Saturday don’t work on the 25th and take it as a holiday, then they get paid as a public holiday and they don’t get a day in lieu.

For the people who usually work on a Saturday and a Monday, the Saturday (the 25th) is to be regarded as the public holiday and the penal rates and days in lieu flow from that principle. They do not get a second public holiday on the Monday. The Monday is to be regarded as a normal working day.

For those people who do not usually work on a Saturday but do usually work on a Monday then they take the Monday as the public holiday. This means that if they don’t work on the Monday they get paid as if it were a public holiday (with no day in lieu). If they do work then they get paid 1 time and a day in lieu.

For those of you who hire casuals who don’t normally work on either Saturday or Monday but will work the Saturday, then the Saturday is a normal day – it is not a public holiday. For casuals who don’t usually work on a Saturday or a Monday but are called in to work on the Monday, then the Monday is to be regarded as a public holiday. They will have to be paid 1 time for all hours worked but they do not get a day in lieu.

We had the following email from a client (and I will give you our answer). ‘‘Our scenario is as follows: We have a dairy farm worker, [who] would normally work Saturday, Sunday, Monday. [Because it’s his rostered weekend on]. We prefer to give stat days off as they occur, so for Xmas, Easter etc, our staff take the days off just as would happen if they worked in an office in town. However, Mondayisation has us confused. If it was his three-day weekend off, obviously it wouldn’t matter as both Saturday and Monday would be normal days off. But, in our case, do we give him Saturday off, and then he works Monday as a normal day with no time in lieu or time and a half owed? Does he take Saturday off and Monday also? Or does he take Monday off only? ’’

The answer to the above query is straightforward if you revert to basic principles (but confusing as heck for those of us who do not work with the legislation on a daily basis!).

In this case because the worker would usually work both the Saturday and the Monday, then the Saturday is treated as the public holiday. That means for that day they get 1 time for all hours worked on the public holiday (the Saturday) and a day off in lieu. For them the Monday is a normal Monday, not a public holiday like it would be for a Monday to Friday worker.

I hope that this clarifies the matter for you; if it just makes it more confusing don’t shoot the messenger!

Mary-Jane Thomas is a partner at Preston Russell Law. E-mail her at MaryJane.Thomas@prlaw.co.nz.