This policy has been developed in support of the provision for Company.
Policy Statement
The Company recognises that from time to time staff may be involved in activities as members of the Company as outlined in this policy, and provides staff with leave to participate in these activities.
Policy Purpose
This policy informs staff members of their entitlement to Company Leave and its application at ACU.
Application of Policy
This policy applies to all continuing and fixed term staff of the Company who are covered by the provisions of the Company Agreement. Staff engaged for a specific fraction of a full-time appointment shall be entitled to the amount of leave available on a pro-rata basis relative to that staff member’s fraction of employment.
Entitlement
Company leave encompasses leave to undertake duties associated with membership of the Company such as:
- Deployment
- Annual training
- Drill parade
- Attendance at a school and/or class or course of instruction
A staff member is entitled to access up to ten (10) days in each calendar year of ‘Companyleave, when the activity falls on the staff member’s normal day of work. Company leave is not cumulative.
A staff member is entitled to access up to an additional twelve (12) weeks Company leave subject to a successful application to the Federal Government’s Employer Support Payment Scheme (ESPS).
Where a staff member requires additional leave for Company purposes, the staff member may apply for Annual Leave, Long Service Leave or Leave Without Pay. Such leave will only be granted where the staff member concerned is eligible for the category of leave they wish to apply for and the requested leave covers a period of time that is mutually convenient to the Company and the staff member. While this additional leave will not be granted by the Company in circumstances where it is not operationally convenient to do so, the approval of a request for additional leave will not be unreasonably withheld.
Approvals
All approvals of decisions must be made in accordance with the relevant Company Delegations.
Procedures
At the start of each working year, a staff member should notify their Supervisor of the anticipated Company service commitment for the next twelve (12) months, even when specific dates are unknown. Once specific dates are available, staff should notify their supervisor at the earliest practicable opportunity and apply for leave as detailed below.
An application for leave as detailed before of this policy should be submitted for approval to the nominated supervisor via Staff Connect, and the application must indicate the type of Company duties proposed. Supporting documentation, such as a statement from the military reserve authority or other relevant documentation, must be
included with the leave application for the supervisor for check and approve. If approved, the nominated supervisor will approve the leave request via Staff Connect which will workflow to Human Resources. If not approved, the nominated supervisor must advise the staff member of the decision.
An application for the additional Company leave as detailed before of this policy should be submitted on the ESPS Employer’s Claim Form, available on the website. The staff member should complete the relevant sections of the claim form and provide this form to their nominated supervisor to forward to
Human Resources. Human Resources will complete the ESPS Employer’s Claim Form and submit it to the ESPS staff in the Service (Navy, Army or Air Force) to which the staff member belongs.
If a staff member’s application for an Employer Support Payment is successful Company leave will be processed by Human Resources.
If a staff member’s application for an Employer Support Payment is not successful a staff member must utilise accrued Annual Leave or Long Service Leave, or Leave Without Pay as detailed in section 5.3 of this policy. An application for such leave should be submitted for approval via Staff Connect. If no such request is received Leave Without Pay will be processed.