Is Your Employer Paying Leave Loading? How to Check Your Payslip and Award
Leave loading isn't automatic — it depends entirely on your specific award. Here's how to check whether you're actually entitled to it, spot it on your payslip, and what to do if it's missing.
The first question: are you even entitled to it?
Unlike annual leave itself, leave loading is not a universal NES entitlement. It only applies if it's specifically written into your modern award, enterprise agreement, or employment contract. Many awards include it; some don't. Before checking whether your employer is paying it correctly, the first step is confirming it applies to you at all.
What leave loading actually is
Where it applies, leave loading is an additional payment — commonly 17.5% of your base rate — paid on top of your ordinary pay for the period of annual leave you take. The rationale historically offered is that it compensates employees for losing access to overtime and penalty rates they might otherwise have earned while working, rather than being on leave.
Full explainer Annual Leave Loading Explained — where the 17.5% came from, the shift-worker comparison method, and a live calculator →How to check your payslip
The clearest way to confirm whether you're being paid loading is to look directly at a payslip covering a period where you took annual leave.
What a correctly loaded payslip looks like
If your award provides for loading and this second line is missing entirely — just the base leave payment with nothing else — that's the sign to look into it further.
What a missing-loading payslip looks like, for comparison
On its own, this isn't necessarily wrong — it depends entirely on whether your award actually provides for loading. Check that first before assuming an error.
Check your exact loading entitlement
Enter your leave period and rate to see what loading, if any, you should receive.
Step-by-step: confirming your entitlement
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1
Identify your applicable award or agreement
Check your employment contract or payslip for the award name, or search the Fair Work Ombudsman's award finder based on your industry and role.
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2
Search the award text for "leave loading"
Most awards that include it will state the exact percentage (commonly 17.5%) and any conditions attached to it.
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3
Pull a payslip from a period you took leave
Compare the leave payment line against your ordinary rate for the same hours, and look for a separate loading line.
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4
Calculate what you should have received
Use the Annual Leave Loading Calculator to check the exact dollar figure your award entitles you to.
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5
Raise it with payroll if there's a gap
Missing loading is often a straightforward payroll configuration issue rather than deliberate underpayment — start with a direct, factual conversation.
Does loading apply to a termination payout too?
This is genuinely inconsistent across awards. Some extend leave loading to a termination payout for unused annual leave, calculated the same way it would be if the leave were taken during employment. Others limit loading specifically to leave actually taken, excluding it from a payout. If you're resigning or have been made redundant, this is worth checking directly in your award rather than assuming either way — it's a common source of underpayment disputes at termination.
Related guide What Happens to Your Annual Leave When You Resign? — including whether loading applies to the payout →Don't confuse this with casual loading
Annual leave loading and casual loading share a name pattern but are completely different payments. Casual loading (commonly 25%) is an addition to the hourly rate paid to casual employees in place of missing entitlements like annual leave altogether. Casual employees are never entitled to annual leave loading, because they're never entitled to annual leave in the first place.
Related guide Casual vs Permanent Employment — the difference between casual loading and annual leave loading →This guide provides general information only. Leave loading provisions, rates, and their application to termination payouts vary significantly by award and enterprise agreement — always check the specific instrument that applies to your role.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about checking and confirming annual leave loading in Australia.
How do I know if I'm entitled to annual leave loading?
Check your specific modern award, enterprise agreement, or contract for a clause mentioning "leave loading" or "annual leave loading" — it's not an automatic NES entitlement, so it depends entirely on your governing instrument.
What percentage is annual leave loading?
Most commonly 17.5% of your base rate, applied to the leave period taken. The exact rate and whether it applies at all depends on your specific award.
How do I check my payslip for leave loading?
Look for a separate line item during a pay period that included annual leave — it should show roughly 17.5% on top of the ordinary leave payment. Use the Annual Leave Loading Calculator to check the exact figure you should see.
Is leave loading paid on leave taken or only when it's paid out?
Depends on the award. Most pay it when leave is taken during employment; whether it also extends to a termination payout for unused leave varies — check your award's specific wording.
What should I do if I think I'm owed leave loading I'm not getting?
Confirm your award actually provides for it first, then raise the gap directly with your employer or payroll — it's often a configuration error. If unresolved, contact the Fair Work Ombudsman.
Do casual employees get leave loading?
No. Casuals aren't entitled to annual leave at all, so there's nothing to apply loading to. Casual loading (commonly 25% on the hourly rate) is a separate, unrelated payment.