Everyone
When a public holiday falls on a weekend
Find out what happens when a public holiday falls on a Saturday or Sunday, and what employees can get.
When a public holiday falls on a Saturday or Sunday, what the employee gets depends on whether that day is one they would have worked. This is called an otherwise working day.
In some cases, the public holiday stays on the weekend. In others, it moves to Monday (or sometimes Tuesday).
The outcome affects both:
- when the employee gets the public holiday, and
- what they are entitled to be paid or take as leave.
If the employee usually works on the weekend
If the employee would have worked on the Saturday or Sunday, the public holiday stays on that day. This is because it’s an otherwise working day for them.
This means the public holiday applies on the weekend day, not on Monday (or Tuesday). Monday (or Tuesday) is treated as a normal day.
What the employee gets then depends on whether they work on the public holiday.
If the employee works on the public holiday
If the employee works on the public holiday (Saturday or Sunday), they:
- are paid at least time and a half, and
- get an alternative holiday.
An alternative holiday (also called time in lieu) is a paid day off the employee can take later.
For information about how public holiday pay is calculated, go to:
If the employee does not work on the public holiday
If the employee does not work on the public holiday (Saturday or Sunday), they:
- get a paid day off (at relevant daily pay or average daily pay), and
- do not get an alternative holiday.
For information about how relevant daily pay and average daily is calculated, go to:
Calculating holiday and leave pay
What happens on Monday (or Tuesday)
Monday (or Tuesday) is treated as a normal day, not a public holiday. If they work on Monday (or Tuesday), they get paid their normal rate (based on what’s in their employment agreement).
If they do not work on Monday (or Tuesday), they're not paid, unless they're on paid leave, or:
- the workplace closed, and
- they would have worked if the workplace had not closed, and
- their employment agreement says they are paid in this situation.
If the workplace closes on Monday
Some workplaces close on the Monday to keep things consistent for the whole team. This is because, for employees who do not normally work weekends, the public holiday has moved to Monday, so that becomes their day off.
Instead of having some staff off and others working, the employer may choose to close the workplace for everyone. The employer can only close if:
- it’s in the employment agreement, and
- they do it in good faith and follow a fair process.
If they do close and the employee would have worked that day, the employer still has to pay them (unless the employment agreement says otherwise).
The employee and employer can also agree for the employee to use annual leave for that day instead. The employer may also require the employee to take annual leave.
If the employee does not usually work on the weekend
If the employee would not have worked on the Saturday or Sunday, the public holiday moves to another day. This is because the weekend day is not an otherwise working day for them.
This is called ‘mondayisation’. It means the public holiday applies on Monday (or sometimes Tuesday), not on the weekend.
The weekend day (Saturday or Sunday) is treated as a normal day, not a public holiday.
If the employee works on the moved public holiday
If the Monday (or Tuesday) is an otherwise working day (a day the employee would have worked), they:
- are paid at least time and a half, and
- get an alternative holiday.
If it is not an otherwise working day, they:
- are paid at least time and a half, and
- do not get an alternative holiday.
An alternative holiday (also called time in lieu) is a paid day off the employee can take later.
For information about how public holiday pay is calculated, go to:
If the employee does not work on the moved public holiday
If the Monday (or Tuesday) is an otherwise working day (a day the employee would have worked), they:
- get a paid day off (at relevant daily pay or average daily pay), and
- do not get an alternative holiday.
If it is not an otherwise working day, they do not get public holiday pay or an alternative holiday.
For information about how relevant daily pay and average daily is calculated, go to:
Calculating holiday and leave pay
What happens on the weekend day
The weekend day (Saturday or Sunday) is treated as a normal day, not a public holiday.
- If they work on the weekend day, they are paid their normal rate (based on what’s in their employment agreement).
- If they do not work on the weekend day, they're not paid.
If the employee has casual or changing days of work
It may not be clear whether the employee would have worked on the Saturday or Sunday. This can happen if their work pattern is not regular.
For example, the employee might:
- not have set working days,
- have an irregular schedule, or
- have work days that change from week to week.
If it’s unclear, the employer and employee should talk it through and look at what usually happens in practice, for example, they can:
- look at past rosters or timesheets to see if the employee often works that day
- check if the employee had been scheduled or had agreed to work that day
- consider whether it would be reasonable to expect the employee to work, based on their usual pattern.
The employer and employee need to agree in good faith on whether the day is an otherwise working day (meaning a day the employee would have worked if it was not a public holiday).
For guidance on how to work this out, go to:
Managing public holidays as an employer - Otherwise working day
Work out your situation
If the employee has regular hours, this is usually straightforward. If the days they work are irregular or change often, it may take a bit more discussion to work it out fairly.
- Step 1: Check if the employee would have worked that day.
If the days they work vary, look at the employee’s employment agreement, past patterns, rosters, or what would reasonably be expected. - Step 2: Check if the public holiday stays on the weekend or moves.
- If it is an otherwise working day (a day they would have worked), it stays on the weekend day.
- If it is not, it moves to Monday or Tuesday.
- Step 3: Work out what the employee gets based on that outcome.
Answer these questions to work out your situation
Which public holidays move and which ones do not
Some public holidays can move to another day
There are 6 public holidays that can fall on a weekend. When they do, they can be ‘mondayised’ (moved to Monday or Tuesday) for some employees.
- New Year’s Day (1 January)
- Day after New Year’s Day (2 January)
- Waitangi Day (6 February)
- Anzac Day (25 April)
- Christmas Day (25 December)
- Boxing Day (26 December)
These public holidays are fixed to a calendar date, so the date does not change.
What can change is the day the holiday is ‘observed’. This means the day the employee actually gets as the public holiday for work purposes (time off or public holiday pay).
Example
Anzac Day is on 25 April.
- In 2025, 25 April was on a Friday — it was observed on that day.
- In 2026, 25 April was on a Saturday.
This means in 2026, Anzac Day could have moved to (been observed on) Monday 27 April for some people.
When a public holiday moves to Tuesday
This can happen when one of the following public holidays falls on a Sunday:
- Christmas Day
- Boxing Day
- New Years Day
- Day after New Years Day.
For example, Christmas Day falls on a Saturday and Boxing Day falls on a Sunday. This means:
- Christmas Day could move to Monday for some people
- Boxing Day could move to Tuesday for some people.
This is still called ‘mondayisation’, even though one day moves to Tuesday. The term covers both days shifting to the next working days after the weekend.
Public holidays and anniversary dates
Shop trading restrictions
There are some public holidays when almost all shops must close, unless they meet certain conditions. These are called shop trading restrictions.
Anzac Day and Christmas Day are the only public holidays with shop trading restrictions that can fall on a weekend.
If they fall on a weekend, shop trading restrictions are based on the calendar date of the public holiday, not the 'mondayised' date.
This means:
- restrictions apply to the actual public holiday (Saturday or Sunday)
- restrictions do not move to Monday (or Tuesday), even if the holiday is 'mondayised' for employees.
Restricted trading days for shops
Some public holidays always stay on the same weekday
There are 5 public holidays that are not ‘mondayised’ because they always fall on a specific day of the week.
- Good Friday (always Friday)
- Easter Monday (always Monday)
- King’s Birthday (always first Monday in June)
- Matariki (always Friday)
- Labour Day (always fourth Monday in October)
These public holidays are set to a weekday, so they do not move.
Regional anniversary days (for example, Auckland anniversary) are observed on a weekday, often on a Monday. This means they also cannot be ‘mondayised’.
If an employee believes they did not get their correct entitlement
If an employee believes they have not received their correct public holiday entitlement, they can contact us.
They can use our online form or call 0800 20 90 20. We will handle all concerns in a safe and confidential way.
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