A part-time employee in Australia works fewer than 38 hours a week, or fewer than the full-time hours at their workplace, usually on a regular pattern. There is no national minimum number of hours. Awards set a minimum shift instead. Under the Clerks Private Sector Award it is 3 consecutive hours. Part-time employees get the same entitlements as full-time employees, on a pro rata basis.
Updated 27 October 2026.
How many hours is part time?
The Fair Work Ombudsman says part-time employees work less than 38 hours a week and their hours are usually regular each week. They are usually employed permanently or on a fixed term contract.
Your award or agreement sets the detail. The Clerks award defines a part-time employee as someone engaged to work fewer ordinary hours than 38 a week, or fewer than the hours the employer treats as full time, on a reasonably predictable basis.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics counts anyone who usually works less than 35 hours a week as employed part time. That is a rule for statistics. Your own status comes from your award, agreement or contract.
Part time hours by days a week
The 38 hour rule is the simplest way to see it. Under the National Employment Standards an employee can work a maximum of 38 hours in a week unless the employer asks for reasonable extra hours, and a full-time employee works 38 hours a week on average, which is 7.6 hours a day over 5 days. The hours you work part time are agreed with your employer, and your paid leave scales with your share of the 38.
| Days a week | Hours a week | Share of full time |
|---|---|---|
| 5 days | 38 | Full time |
| 4 days | 30.4 | 80% |
| 3 days | 22.8 | 60% |
| 2.5 days | 19 | 50% |
| 2 days | 15.2 | 40% |
| 1 day | 7.6 | 20% |
Fair Work's own example is the 19 hour week, which earns half the paid sick and carer's leave of a colleague on 38 hours. Where your award or employer treats fewer hours than 38 as full time, part time is anything under that number.
Is there a minimum number of hours for part-time work?
Not in the National Employment Standards. Awards set a minimum engagement instead. Under the Clerks award, an employer must roster a part-time employee for at least 3 consecutive hours on any shift.
Do part-time hours have to be agreed in writing?
Under many awards, yes. Fair Work says many awards and agreements have record-keeping rules for part-time employees' hours. The Clerks award requires the employer and employee to agree in writing, when the employee is hired, on
- the number of hours to be worked each day
- the days of the week you will work
- the times you will start and finish each day
Under the Clerks award, a change to your hours or your start and finish times must also be agreed in writing. Your employer can change the days you work by giving you 7 days' notice.
Do extra hours count as overtime?
Often, yes. Fair Work says overtime can include work outside a part-time employee's agreed number of hours. Under the Clerks award, all time worked beyond the hours you agreed in writing is overtime and must be paid at the overtime rate.
Your employer also can't ask or require you to work more than the lesser of 38 hours and your agreed ordinary hours in a week, unless the additional hours are reasonable. Whether they are reasonable depends on things like your health and safety, your family responsibilities, the notice you were given and whether you are paid extra for them. You can refuse extra hours that are unreasonable. Our guide to full-time hours lists every factor.
What leave do part-time employees get?
The same as full-time employees, on a pro rata basis. That includes annual leave and paid sick and carer's leave. Fair Work's example is a part-time employee who works an average of 19 hours a week. She gets half the paid sick and carer's leave of a full-time colleague on 38 hours, who gets 76 hours, or 10 days, a year.
Paid family and domestic violence leave isn't pro rated. Part-time employees get the full 10 days.
Public holidays work on your normal days. If a public holiday falls on a day you normally work, you are paid for it. If it falls on a day you don't work, you aren't. Our guide to public holiday pay covers the rest, and our pro rata salary guide shows how to work out part-time pay from a full-time salary.
What is the difference between part time and casual?
A part-time employee has regular hours and gets paid leave. A casual employee has no firm advance commitment to ongoing work and gets a casual loading, or a specific casual pay rate, instead of paid leave. Under the Clerks award the casual loading is 25% on top of the minimum hourly rate, and a casual must be paid for at least 3 hours on each engagement.
The National Employment Standards give casual employees a pathway to change to full-time or part-time employment.
Can you ask to go part time?
You and your employer can agree to change a full-time job to part time. If you are returning from parental leave, you also have a legal right to request flexible work, including part-time hours. Our guide to returning from parental leave covers that request and how your employer has to answer it.
How many hours is in a part time job?
Fewer than 38 a week, on hours that are usually the same each week. There is no set number, so a part time job can be 1 day a week or 4, and under many awards the exact hours are written into an agreement with your employer when you start.
Is 35 hours a week part time?
For your employment rights, yes, if full time at your workplace is 38 hours. The Australian Bureau of Statistics draws its line at 35 hours, so in the national figures a 35 hour week counts as full time. Your award, agreement or contract decides your own status.
What is the maximum hours for part time?
Under the Clerks award, fewer than 38 ordinary hours a week, or fewer than the hours your employer treats as full time. Your employer can't ask you to work more than the lesser of 38 hours and your agreed ordinary hours in a week unless the extra hours are reasonable, and under the Clerks award any time beyond your agreed hours is overtime.
Can your part time hours change?
Under the Clerks award a change to your hours or your start and finish times must be agreed in writing, and your employer can change the days you work by giving you 7 days' notice. Check your own award or agreement, because that is where the rule sits.
This is general information, not legal or financial advice. Awards and agreements differ, so check the one that covers you.
Sources
- Fair Work Ombudsman, Part-time employees (less than 38 hours, usually regular, pro rata entitlements, the 19 hour sick leave example, family and domestic violence leave not pro rated, the difference from casual employment, hours of work agreements, content last updated 10 August 2026, read 10 October and again 27 October 2026)
- Fair Work Ombudsman, Hours of work (a maximum of 38 hours in a week under the National Employment Standards unless the employer asks for reasonable extra hours, content last updated 9 October 2026, read 27 October 2026)
- Fair Work Ombudsman, When overtime applies (work outside a part-time employee's agreed hours, reasonable additional hours, content last updated 9 October 2026, read 10 October and again 27 October 2026)
- Fair Work Ombudsman, Maximum weekly hours fact sheet (the lesser of 38 hours and agreed ordinary hours for an employee who isn't full time, the reasonableness factors, content last updated 16 January 2026, read 10 October and again 27 October 2026)
- Fair Work Ombudsman, Not working on public holidays (no payment for a public holiday on a day you don't normally work, read 10 October 2026)
- Fair Work Ombudsman, Full-time employees (changing from full time to part time by agreement, read 10 October 2026)
- Clerks Private Sector Award 2020 (clause 10 part-time employees, the definition, the written agreement, changes, 7 days' notice for days, the 3 hour minimum shift and overtime beyond agreed hours. Clause 11, the 25% casual loading, the 3 hour minimum and the casual conversion pathway. Consolidated to 1 July 2026, read 10 October 2026)
- Australian Bureau of Statistics, Understanding full-time and part-time work (part time as usually less than 35 hours a week, released 18 February 2021, read 10 October 2026)
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