Everyone
Casual employment
Learn about casual employees and what entitlements they receive.
What casual employment is
Casual employees and casual employment are not defined in the law. Casual employment usually means a situation where the employee:
- works when it suits them and their employer, and they can turn down work
- does not have a regular pattern of work, and
- does not expect ongoing employment.
Casual employees have most of the same rights and responsibilities as permanent employees — for example, they have the same rights to rest and meal breaks. However:
- they only go to work if their employer asks them to and they agree
- the way annual holidays, and sick, bereavement and family violence leave apply to them can be different
- their employment can usually end without a formal dismissal or resignation process.
How casual employment is different to other employment
The main characteristic of casual employment is that:
- the
employer does not have to provide work to the employee, andAn individual or organisation that hires 1 or more employees and contracts them to work in exchange for wages or salary under a ‘contract of service’ (commonly called an ‘employment agreement’).
- the
employee does not have to accept work from the employer.Any person, whatever their age, who is employed by an employer to do any work for hire or reward under a ‘contract of service’ (commonly called an ‘employment agreement’).
The Employment Relations Authority and Employment Court will also look at other things to decide if an employee is casual. An employee is unlikely to be casual if:
- a regular pattern of work can be established
- they are allocated work in advance on a roster
- they have to tell their employer, and get their agreement, if they’re not going to be available for work
- the work is ongoing, with no significant breaks in employment
- they have consistent start and finish times
- they are an essential part of the business – their employer relies on them to get the work done.
Casual is not the same as on-call
Casual employment is not the same as being When an employee is on standby, and ready and available to work.
Pat is a truck driver. Her employer sometimes contacts her if one of their regular drivers cannot work. Pat can decide whether to accept or decline any work she’s offered.
The amount of work Pat accepts varies from week to week. Some weeks she does not work at all, but last week she worked 4 days.
Pat decides to tell her employer that she can work on Thursdays and Fridays. Pat’s employer calls her on Tuesday and asks if she can work on Friday this week. Pat has changed her mind and says she now cannot work on Friday. Her employer says that’s fine, and they’ll call Pat next time they need a driver.
Pat is a casual employee because:
- the amount of work she does varies each week
- there is no expectation for her employer to offer work
- there is no expectation for Pat to accept work.
Even though Pat told her employer she could work on Thursdays and Fridays, she’s still a casual employee. This is because:
- her employer did not have to offer her work on those days, and
- she could still decline the work when she was offered it.
Jin is a site inspector. Her employment agreement says she is casual.
Jin started working for her employer 6 months ago. Over the past 3 months, she has worked every Tuesday and Thursday.
This week, Jin cannot work on Tuesday. She contacts her employer to let them know she will not be available. Her employer says she must work because there is no one else who can do the inspection that day. They tell Jin that she needs to give them 2 weeks’ notice if she will not be available for work.
Jin is not a casual employee because:
- her pattern of work is consistent and predictable
- she cannot decline work or take time off without giving her employer notice
- she is an essential part of the business.
Even though Jin’s employment agreement says she is casual, it’s her actual work situation which determines what type of employment she has. In this case, Jin’s work situation shows she is a permanent part-time employee.
Employment agreements for casual employees
Casual employees must have an A written document setting out the terms and conditions of employment agreed by the employer and employee (also known as a ‘contract of service’). It can include other contractual documents and agreements made by the employer and employee. Every employee must have a written employment agreement.
- that there is no guarantee of work on a specific day
- that the amount of work will vary
- that each time the employee accepts an offer of work it’s considered a new period of employment
- that the terms of the agreement apply to each new period of employment
- how the employer will let the employee know when there is work available
- that the employee does not have to accept work.
It must contain all the mandatory clauses that are required in an employment agreement. For example, how much the employee will be paid and how any employment relationship problems will be resolved.
You can use our Employment Agreement Builder to create an employment agreement.
Annual holidays and leave for casual employees
Casual employees can work for more than one employer at the same time. However, they cannot combine these hours to qualify for holidays and leave. Entitlement to Paid time away from work for rest and recreation.
Annual holiday entitlement for casuals
All employees are entitled to 4 weeks of paid annual holidays each year after 12 months of continuous employment.
Sometimes casual employees work so irregularly or intermittently that they can be paid their annual holiday entitlement with their pay instead of getting 4 weeks of paid annual holidays each year. This is called ‘ Payment for annual holidays at the rate of not less than 8% of the employee’s gross earnings, which is paid with their regular pay instead of getting 4 weeks’ paid annual holidays each year. Some casual and fixed-term employees may get pay-as-you-go holiday pay by agreement.
However, having irregular or intermittent employment does not mean the employee automatically qualifies for pay-as-you-go. Casual employees can only get pay-as-you-go if it’s impracticable for their employer to provide 4 weeks of annual holidays.
There are also other rules about paying pay-as-you-go. Find out more:
Pay-as-you-go annual holiday pay
Sick, bereavement and family violence leave, and alternative holidays
All employees are entitled to paid sick, bereavement, and family violence leave if:
- they have completed 6 months’ current continuous employment, or
- over a 6-month period they have worked:
- an average of at least 10 hours a week, and
- at least 1 hour a week or 40 hours a month.
Casual employees who qualify for sick, bereavement and family violence leave can take a paid day off if it’s a day they would usually work (an ‘otherwise working day’).
Alternative holiday
Casual employees who work on a public holiday that is an otherwise working day are entitled to an A paid day off to take at another time. Employees get an alternative holiday when they work on a public holiday that is an otherwise working day.
Public holidays rights for employees
Can a casual employee have an otherwise working day?
Generally, casual employees do not have otherwise working days because they do not have set, regular days of work.
However, a casual employee could have an A day that the employee would have worked had it not been a public holiday, sick leave, bereavement leave, family violence leave, annual holiday or an alternative holiday for that employee.
- have worked regularly on the day in question, or
- had agreed to work on the day, or
- could have expected to work on the day.
There is no rule about how many weeks an employee needs to have worked on the day in question for it to be an otherwise working day. Working out if it’s an otherwise working day needs to be done on a case-by-case basis, and employers and employees must consider several factors rather than use a formula. For more information, visit:
Managing public holidays as an employer
If the employee is working regularly, the employer should consider if they are truly casual or if they are permanent. A casual employee could also have an otherwise working day if they were rostered on the day. However, there is a high likelihood that an employee is not truly casual if they are required to work by a roster.
What is continuous employment?
It’s important to know if an employee has continuous employment so that they get the correct holiday and leave entitlements.
‘Continuous employment’ generally means that the employee has worked for the same employer with no significant breaks.
Some breaks in employment still count towards a period of continuous employment for entitlement to annual holidays. These are when an employee was on:
- paid holidays or leave
- parental leave
- volunteers’ leave
- ACC
- unpaid sick, bereavement or family violence leave
- leave without pay for less than 1 week.
It’s good practice to also count these breaks when working out entitlement to sick, bereavement and family violence leave.
Check the employment agreement
Sometimes employment agreements say when employment will be continuous. This could be so that employees who have frequent or regular gaps in employment can get annual holidays and leave entitlements — for example, employees who only work during term-time.
Employees and employers should check the employment agreement to see if it says anything about continuous employment. If it’s not clear, they should talk to each other about it in good faith.
‘Specified employees’ (employees who have extra protections in a restructure) have continuous employment when they transfer from their old employer to a new employer.
All other employees only have continuous employment when they transfer to a new employer if their old and new employers agree to it. However, their old employer must pay out any annual holidays and alternative holidays they owe the employee when their employment ends with that employer.
Find out more:
If an employer dismisses (fires) an employee and then employs (rehires) them again within 1 month, the employee still has continuous employment. The time between firing and re-hiring counts towards their continuous employment period.
The exception is if a A warranted employee of MBIE who ensures employment standards are met in the workplace. They can take enforcement action for non-compliance with employment standards.
- acted in good faith, and
- was not trying to avoid giving the employee their minimum entitlement to holidays and leave.
In this situation, the time between firing and re-hiring does not count towards continuous employment.
Holidays Act 2003 s85 - New Zealand Legislation (external link)
Ending (terminating) casual employment
If the employee wants to end the employment
Casual employees can stop accepting work at any time. They do not usually have to give notice to leave their job because each time they finish working it’s considered the end of their employment.
However, if a casual employee wants to stop working for their employer, they should check their employment agreement to see what it says about resigning and giving notice. For example, they may have to give notice if they’ve already accepted work from their employer. If the agreement requires formal resignation, comply with this.
If the employer wants to end the employment
Employers can stop offering casual employees work at any time. If an employer stops offering work, it’s not a dismissal because they do not have to provide employment. However, if an employer sends an employee home partway through a shift or goes back on an offer of work the employee has accepted, this could be considered a dismissal during a period of employment.
Employers and employees should check the employment agreement or workplace policies to see what they say about:
- cancelling work
- how the casual agreement can end.
When casual employment changes
Employers with casual employees should regularly check the work situation to make sure nothing has changed. For example, an employee who started off casual could have become a permanent part-time employee with a regular pattern of work. If this happens:
- give the employee a new employment agreement which reflects the actual work situation — remember to give them an opportunity to seek independent advice and time to read and understand the agreement before agreeing to it
- review holiday and leave entitlements
- stop any pay-as-you-go payments.
Offering and negotiating as an employer
If an employee has changed from being casual to permanent, the usual obligations around ending employment kick in. The employer cannot just stop offering work. They must:
- follow an appropriate workplace change process if the employee is no longer needed
- follow an appropriate dismissal process if there is a reason to dismiss the employee, for example, serious misconduct.
The employee must give notice if they want to resign from their job.
Vinod began working at a café on 1 July 2024. His employment agreement describes him as a casual employee.
Initially, he only worked the odd shift here and there, which meant he qualified for pay-as-you-go holiday pay because his work was irregular and intermittent. However, from 15 September 2024 he began to regularly work from 9am to 2pm on weekdays. At this point, Vinod’s employment has changed to permanent part-time, and Vinod’s employer should give him a new employment agreement.
From 15 September, Vinod also becomes entitled to:
- sick, bereavement and family violence on 15 March 2025, which is 6 months after he began permanent employment, and
- 4 weeks of annual holidays on 15 September 2025, which is 12 months after he began permanent employment. Any pay-as-you-go holiday payments should stop. If Vinod’s employer does not stop the pay-as-you-go payments, Vinod will get to keep those payments and become entitled to 4 weeks of annual holidays on 15 September 2025.
If Vinod was told without warning not to come into work anymore or stops being offered shifts, this could be an unjustified dismissal as his employer did not follow the correct process when ending permanent part-time employment.
Consider other options
Casual employment arrangements can give employers and employees flexibility at work. For example, casual employees could cover someone who’s away sick or provide extra help during a busy shift.
However, employers must use the correct type of employment for the situation. They must not use casual arrangements to avoid giving employees their entitlements and rights in law.
Employers who need flexibility in their workforce can consider alternatives to casual employment. For example, they could:
- include a clause in the employment agreement that allows the employee to turn down work
- offer employees optional extra hours or flexible work arrangements
- use a recruitment agency if they need workers at short notice.
Employees who think they might not be casual
Employees who think they’ve been incorrectly employed as casual should speak to their employer about the situation.
If you think your rights are not being met in your workplace, you can report this to us using our Get Help form or by calling 0800 20 90 20. Your concerns will be handled in a safe environment.