When positions are made redundant, the affected employees usually start looking for a new job. Should they get paid time off to attend interviews?

Consider this scenario: a company announces that several positions will become redundant at the end of the month. All the affected employees are given the appropriate period of notice, based on their years of service.

One employee takes a day off during the first week of notice to attend an interview for another job. The employee is docked a day’s pay as they did not apply for annual leave and the reason for the absence didn’t qualify them for personal/carer’s leave.

The employee claims he is entitled to a paid day off during the notice period to seek other employment.  Is this correct?

The employee is employed under the Clerks – Private Sector Award 2010. 

Job search entitlement

In this case – yes. Most modern awards contain a ‘Job search entitlement’ when an employee’s position is made redundant, which allows an employee paid time off to attend interviews to seek other employment. Such a provision is contained in the Clerks – Private Sector Award 2020 (cl 42.3) and is referred to as ‘Job search entitlement’.

The clause provides for the following: 

42.3 Job search entitlement

(a) Where an employer has given notice of termination to an employee in circumstances of redundancy, the employee must be allowed time off without loss of pay of up to one day each week of the minimum period of notice prescribed by section 117(3) of the Act for the purpose of seeking other employment.

(b) If an employee is allowed time off without loss of pay of more than one day under clause 42.3(a), the employee must, at the request of the employer, produce proof of attendance at an interview.

(c) A statutory declaration is sufficient for the purpose of clause 42.3(b).

(d) An employee who fails to produce proof when required under clause 42.3(b) is not entitled to be paid for the time off.

(e) This entitlement applies instead of clause 41.2.

This means, for example, an employee given four weeks’ notice of their redundancy is entitled to up to four days' job search entitlement during the period of notice to attend job interviews. This is subject to the production of satisfactory evidence of attending interviews after one day’s entitlement has been claimed by the employee.

Reference should be made to the applicable modern award to determine whether an employee is entitled to a job search entitlement.

Termination - other than redundancy

An employee terminated by an employer for reasons other than redundancy is subject to a separate entitlement under the award.

Usually, there is a term in a modern award that entitles an employee to one day’s paid absence during a period of notice where the reason for termination by the employer is not due to redundancy.

For example, the Clerks – Private Sector Award 2010 (cl 41.2) provides that where an employer has given notice of termination to an employee, an employee must be allowed up to one day’s time off without loss of pay for the purpose of seeking other employment. The time off is to be taken at times that are convenient to the employee after consultation with the employer. The difference, in this case, is that the job search entitlement is limited to one day’s pay for the period of notice.

The job search entitlement does not apply where an employee resigns.

The bottom line: An award-covered employee who is terminated by an employer will usually have an entitlement to paid absence during a period of notice for the purpose of seeking other employment. It does not apply if the employee resigns.