Leave entitlements

The University of Notre Dame provides a range of leave entitlements designed to support employees through both personal and professional circumstances.

The leave options that are available have differing eligibility and service requirements for access. These are typically captured in the Enterprise Agreement and associated Policies and Procedures, including the over-arching Leave Policy. It is an expectation that leave is managed accordingly by employees and their managers.

In most instances, leave requests are submitted through the PeopleSoft Employee Self Service but some leave types require different booking arrangements.

  • Annual Leave

    Purpose

    Annual Leave provides employees the ability to take a break from work for rest and recreation, supporting their work-life balance and overall wellbeing.

    Process & Approval

    Employees must submit a leave request through PeopleSoft Employee Self Service. Leave must be approved by the employee’s manager prior to the leave being taken, considering both operational needs and the employee’s personal circumstances, but will not be unreasonably withheld. Leave planning should form part of the performance review process.

    Eligibility and entitlements are outlined in the UNDA Enterprise Agreement 2022-2026 Clause 30 Annual Leave.

  • Personal / Carer’s Leave

    Purpose

    Personal / Carers’ Leave is a paid leave entitlement to provide time off for employees who are ill or injured, or who need to care for immediate family member who is unwell or affected by an emergency.

    Process & Approval

    Employees must notify their manager as soon as practicable and provide an expected date of return to work. Medical certificates or statutory declarations are required where a pattern of absences exist or as requested. Applications should be submitted through PeopleSoft Employee Self Service.

    Eligibility and entitlements are outlined in the UNDA Enterprise Agreement 2022-2026 Clause 31 Personal/ Carer’s Leave.

  • Unpaid Personal / Carer’s Leave – (Unpaid Personal Leave)

    Purpose

    Unpaid Personal / Carers’ Leave is to provide time off for employees who are ill or injured, or who need to care for immediate family member and have no paid Personal / Carer’s leave entitlements remaining. Annual leave does not need to be exhausted prior to applying for Unpaid Personal/Carer’s Leave. Leave entitlements do not accrue and service for the purpose of continuous service is not counted during periods of unpaid leave.

    Process & Approval

    Employees must notify their manager with as much notice as possible and provide relevant documentation if requested. Applications must be submitted through PeopleSoft Employee Self Service and select Unpaid Personal Leave type from the dropdown.

    Eligibility and entitlements are outlined in the UNDA Enterprise Agreement 2022-2026 Clause 31.4.

  • Compassionate Leave

    Purpose

    Compassionate Leave (also known as Bereavement Leave) is to support employees during time of grief or serious life-threatening illness within their immediate family or household.

    Process & Approval

    Employees taking compassionate leave must notify their manager as soon as possible. Reasonable supporting evidence which may include medical certificate or a death notice may be required. Employees must submit their application through PeopleSoft Employee Self Service and attach relevant supporting documentation.

    Eligibility and entitlements are outlined in the UNDA Enterprise Agreement 2022-2026 Clause 32 Compassionate Leave.

  • Leave Without Pay (LWOP) – (Unpaid Leave)

    Purpose

    Leave Without Pay (LWOP) (Unpaid Leave) is provided at the University’s discretion and is not an entitlement. Leave entitlements do not accrue and service for the purpose of continuous service is not counted during periods of unpaid leave.

    Process & Approval

    Applications must be submitted through PeopleSoft Employee Self Service and select Unpaid Leave type from the dropdown. The request will require approval from their manager with endorsement from People and Culture.

    Employees must provide the reason for the request in the comments section and will be used to assess whether any other leave type would be applicable.

    Approval of LWOP for more than five (5) days per calendar year per employee requires Senior Leaders’ approval on advice from Director People Services as per the Delegations.

    For more information, refer to the Leave Management Policy Clause 5.2 Leave Without Pay.

  • Parental Leave

    Purpose

    Parental leave is available to support employees as they welcome a new child into their family.

    Paid Parental Leave may be taken when an eligible employee gives birth, when the employee’s spouse or de facto partner gives birth, or when the employee adopts a child under the age of 16.Paid Parental Leave may also be taken when a non-birth parent becomes the primary carer of the child and relevant supporting information is provided (e.g. a letter from their partners employers stating their return-to-work date and hours).

    Paid Partner leave of up to 2 weeks and Unpaid Parental Leave is also available in relevant circumstances

    Process & Approval

    To apply for parental leave, employees can submit a request via PeopleSoft Employee Self Service using the relevant parental leave type and attach supporting documentation confirming the due date or adoption date.

    For more information, please refer to the UNDA Enterprise Agreement 2022-2026 Clause 35 Parental Leave and Procedure: Parental Leave.

  • Study Leave

    Purpose

    Study Leave is to support employees (other than Casual or Sessional Employees) undertaking university approved or professionally prescribed study relevant to their current or future roles.

    Process & Approval

    Study Leave must be discussed and approved by the employees’ manager and the employees may be required to submit their application through PeopleSoft Employee Self Service. Study Leave approval is subject to operational requirements and satisfactory work and academic progress.

    Please refer to the UNDA Enterprise Agreement 2022-2026 Clause 40 Study Leave, the Study Support Policy, Procedure and Study Support Page for information and University requirements.

  • Professional Development Leave

    Purpose

    University employees, other than a casual or sessional employee, may be granted leave to undertake professional development and attend short courses or conferences.

    Leave Entitlement

    Professional development leave is granted at the absolute discretion of the University, normally up to five (5) days per year and does not accumulate.

    Process & Approval

    To apply for professional development leave, employees’ and managers are required to discuss in advance the timing of any leave being taken.

    Employees should provide as much information on the event as possible such as the name, dates, location and relevancy to their professional development.

    All applications must be submitted through PeopleSoft Employee Self Service. The People Services Advisory Team will conduct an initial review to confirm compliance with the Leave Management Policy. Following this first-level endorsement, the request will be forwarded to the employee’s line manager for final review and approval.

    For more information, refer to the UNDA Enterprise Agreement 2022-2026 Clause 41 Professional Development Leave.

  • Community Service Leave

    Purpose

    Community Service Leave is to enable all employees including casual and sessional to engage in approved community service such as emergency services or jury duty.

    Additional Information

    Community Service Leave applies to recognised emergency bodies such as State Emergency Service (SES), Country Fire Authority (CFA), or the RSPCA.

    Process & Approval

    Employees must submit their application through PeopleSoft Employee Self Service and attach relevant supporting documentation which may include jury summons, emergency service letter.

    Eligibility and entitlements are outlined in the UNDA Enterprise Agreement 2022-2026 Clause 33 Community Service Leave.

  • Cultural and Ceremonial Leave

    Purpose

    The University recognises the importance of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees participating in cultural or ceremonial business.

    This leave is for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees for ceremonial and cultural purposes to meet the employee’s customs, traditional law, and participation in ceremonial activities.

    The leave will be a pro rata entitlement base on full-time equivalence, pro rata for part-time employees and employees on a fixed-term contract of less than twelve (12) months.

    Process & Approval

    Employees must submit their application through PeopleSoft Employee Self Service.

    For more information, refer to the UNDA Enterprise Agreement 2022-2026, Clause 38 Cultural and Ceremonial Leave.

  • Leave For Defence Force Activities

    Purpose

    The University recognises the importance of employee’s commitment to their service in the Australian Defence Force Reserves. This leave is to support them in meeting their obligations and service.

    Where an employee has exhausted their entitlement to paid leave for defence force activities, the employee may apply to access any accrued annual leave, long service leave or leave without pay.

    Any unpaid leave taken by an employee for the purposes of attending Australian Defence Force Reserves activities is recognised as continuous or qualifying service for the purposes of incremental progression and leave accruals (such as annual, long service and personal leave).

    Casual and sessional employees are not entitled to DFA leave.

    Process & Approval

    To access Australian Defence Force Reserve leave, an eligible employee must as soon as it is practicable, provide the University with notice of their absence, including the expected period of the absence.

    This leave application must be submitted via PeopleSoft Employee Self Service using the Defence Force Leave type.

    For more information, refer to the UNDA Enterprise Agreement 2022-2026, Clause 39 Leave for Defence Force Activities.

  • Life Event Leave

    Purpose

    Life Event Leave is intended for unexpected or significant life events that may affect an employee’s ability to attend work due to challenging and extraordinary circumstances.

    Minimum Eligibility

    Life event leave is strictly assessed on a case-by-case basis. Consideration will be given to whether any other leave type under the Enterprise Agreement applies to your absence from the workplace. You may be required to exhaust other leave types before commencing Life Event Leave.

    Leave Entitlement

    If the request is approved, the University may grant an employee up to 20 days of paid leave per annum (pro-rata for part-time employees).

    Process & Approval

    For the assessment of the Life Event Leave application, employees apply directly to People and Culture by reaching out to the Senior HR Business Partner. As much notice as possible must be provided, along with the expected duration of the leave and any supporting documentation that may assist in the assessment of the request.

  • Long Service Leave

    Purpose

    Long Service Leave (LSL) entitles eligible employees to additional leave after serving an extended period of continuous service with the University of Notre Dame.

    Leave Entitlement

    An employee who has completed 10 years continuous service will be entitled to 13 weeks paid LSL. Additionally, an employee who has completed 7 years continuous service may apply to the University to take up to a maximum of 9 weeks pro rata LSL.

    For every subsequent period of 5 years continuous service an employee will be entitled to an additional 6.5 weeks LSL.

    Additional Information

    LSL can be taken at full or half pay.

    Casual and Sessional employees are entitled to LSL in accordance with the relevant state based legislation.

    Process & Approval

    Employees must provide at least 12 months written notice of their intention to take LSL. Employees must discuss and gain approval from their manager, considering both operational needs and employee’s personal circumstance.

    If planning to take LSL, it is recommended that employees contact People and Culture to confirm eligibility and available entitlement.

    Once confirmed, employees must submit a leave request through PeopleSoft Employee Self Service. The People and Culture Team will conduct an initial review to confirm eligibility and entitlement. Following this first-level endorsement, the request will be forwarded to the employee’s line manager for final review and approval.

    For more information, refer to the UNDA Enterprise Agreement 2022-2026 Clause 36 Long Service Leave.

  • Family and Domestic Violence Leave

    Purpose

    Family and Domestic Violence (FDV) Leave is available to support an employee experiencing domestic or family-related violence. Employees, including casual and sessional staff, can access up to 20 days of paid, non-accumulating leave each year.

    Process & Support

    Employees can apply for Family and Domestic Violence leave via PeopleSoft Employee Self Service using the Family Domestic Violence Leave type. Requests are confidentially processed by People & Culture to ensure the leave is handled sensitively and confidentially.

    Support is available should you choose to access it through a Respect@Work Officer.

    For more information, visit Family and Domestic Violence.

Contact us

Fremantle & Sydney Campus
P&C Service Portal
Phone: +61 8 9433 0605 (Fremantle)
Phone: +61 2 8204 4424 (Sydney)