Cashing In Annual Leave

By Bruce Moore and Sally Armstrong

Cmr Larkin of the AIRC has ruled that a non-union collective agreement which allowed employees earning more than $30,000 pa to cash in annual leave. Larkin ruled that it was a breach of the no-disadvantage test.

The agreement sought to only allow cashing in cases of genuine financial need or where an employee had taken some annual leave in the previous 12 months. Larkin ruled that allowing cashing in would undermine the "physical and mental respite" aims of annual leave.

The case was the Timevale Pty Ltd trading as Aussie World and the Ettamogah Pub re Aussie World Employee's - Certified Agreement 2002-2005 AIRC (Larkin C) (PR923952) 23/10/02

The major precedent referred to was Just Cuts (Canberra and Queanbeyan) Agreement 2002-2003 (2001) 49 AILR 4-429(21)

(CCH Industrial Law News, issue 11, December 2002)