Part-time work

Part-time employees receive the same employment entitlements as full-time workers on a pro-rata basis.

Complying with your industrial award

Make sure any part-time working arrangements meet the requirements of the award or agreement that covers your business.

Learn more about part-time employees on the Fair Work Ombudsman website.

Employer benefits

For employers, the benefits of allowing part-time working arrangements include:

• being able to cover busy periods efficiently
• retaining valued employees who may not be able to, or want to, work full-time
• cost saving (if a part-time arrangement meets all the requirements of a position)
• attracting applicants from a wider employment pool.

Full-time workers changing to part-time

If you receive a proposal from a full-time employee to work part-time, consider whether:

• the essential functions of the position can be completed in the proposed time frame
• the role can be logically split on a time, task or customer basis
• you can reassign some of the employee's tasks, or if another employee will be required
• customers and colleagues will suffer as a result.

When a full-time employee changes to part-time work, you may need to make arrangements for important tasks to be covered in a timely manner. Options include:

• a job share arrangement to cover the time the employee is not there
• making sure the employee can be flexible when there is an emergency or unforeseen deadline
• sharing project records so that other team members can pick up their work
• buddy systems (where another employee is able to respond to urgent queries and provide information on the part-time employee's work projects).

Also consider...

• Learn more about employer obligations for flexible working arrangements, including industrial relations laws.
• Find out about managing flexible working arrangements in your business.
• Read about your rights and obligations under flexible working arrangements.