A sleepover is when an employee is required to sleep overnight at their client’s premises. It’s different to a 24 hour care shift. The span for a sleepover is a continuous period of 8 hours.

Can employees work before and/or after a sleepover?

Yes.

Employees must be rostered or paid for a minimum of 4 hours’ work for one of the periods.

Is it considered one shift?

Yes. The sleepover and the hours worked before and/or after the sleepover are counted as one continuous shift.

Is a sleepover a break?

No. A sleepover can’t count as a break between rostered work periods, or as a break in a broken shift.

See Broken shifts in the Social, Community, Home Care & Disability Services Award for more information.

Does a sleepover count as ordinary hours of work?

No. Only work before and/or after the sleepover counts as ordinary hours.

What is an employee paid during a sleepover?

See Pay for sleepovers in the Social, Community Services, Home Care & Disability Services Award for more information.

Do shift penalty rates apply?

Shift penalty rates will apply when a shift meets the definition of an afternoon, night or public holiday shift.

They’re only paid for the hours the employee works before and/or after a sleepover.

Example: Sleepover and shift allowances not on a weekend

Orla works from 5pm until 10pm Monday, does a sleepover from 10pm until 6am then works from 6am to 9am on Tuesday.

A night shift is a shift finishing after midnight or starting before 6am Monday to Friday.

As Orla’s shift finishes at 9am, she gets paid the 15% night shift penalty rate for the hours worked from 5pm to 10pm on Monday and 6am to 9am on Tuesday.

Shift penalty rates and weekend work

Shift penalty rates don’t apply on Saturdays or Sundays. Employees working before or after a sleepover on a Saturday or Sunday get paid:

• 150% of their ordinary rate of pay for work performed between midnight Friday and midnight Saturday
• 200% of their ordinary rate of pay for work between midnight Saturday and midnight Sunday.

Where work is performed on a Monday after a Sunday sleepover, the employee is paid the 15% night shift penalty rate for the morning shift.

Casual employees also get their casual loading.

Example: Sleepover and shift allowances on weekends

Bernie is a full-time employee.

He has a shift on Sunday afternoon from 3pm to 10pm, does a sleepover from 10pm to 6am, and then works from 6am to 9am on Monday.

Bernie gets paid 200% of his ordinary hourly rate from 3pm to 10pm on Sunday. For the hours worked from 6am to 9am on Monday he’s paid the 15% night shift loading.