Modern Award update – Pandemic leave
Extending Schedule X
The Fair Work Commission (FWC) has determined it necessary to extend to 31 December Schedule X’s unpaid pandemic leave provision currently operating in 74 awards.
Originally inserted in April last year and extended in both July and September, Schedule X also provides the flexibility to take twice as much annual leave at half pay.
After considering recent submissions the FWC concluded that “Continuing access to unpaid pandemic leave will enable more people to remain in employment and will support the important public policy objective of encouraging those who should self-isolate to do so,”
However, paid pandemic leave for aged care workers has ended (as of 29 March) with the FWC concluding that the “emergency circumstances” that impelled it to make award changes in the first place no longer exist.
The FWC initially granted paid pandemic leave for workers covered by the aged care, nurses and health professionals awards last July in the face of employer opposition before extending it in October until 29 March observing that circumstances had “significantly improved”.
