A British woman who moved to Australia has revealed her shock after discovering how much money someone can make by working on a public holiday because of the fines.
Tara, from Merseyside in North West England, made the move to Australia after suffering burnout while working in a senior role at a business technology company in London.
The 29-year-old decided she needed to change her life and made the drastic move to Melbourne, where she now works in the hospitality industry.
In a video shared on TikTok, Tara was surprised to discover that her hourly rate was $65 for working as a hostess at a restaurant on Good Friday.
In Australia, penalty rates include additional payments to employees working on public holidays and overtime.
The specific penalty rates for public holidays may vary depending on the industry, type of work and any relevant agreements.
Tara, who moved from England to live in Melbourne, revealed her hourly bank holiday rate. The 29-year-old shared her surprise at the ‘insane’ amount she earned working on a public holiday (pictured)
Tara branded the holiday pay as ‘insane’ and explained that in a single 12-hour shift she would earn enough to cover half her rent for the month.
‘The hourly rates for public holidays in Australia are actually insane. I’m working 12 hours today, but I get paid about $65 an hour because I’m on a temporary contract,” Tara said.
‘That’s paying almost half of my rent in one shift. That’s paying for my Glastonbury ticket (a five-day music festival in Somerset, England) and more in one shift. It’s just insane.’
Tara added that Australia is a place where someone can make “really good money” and enjoy their life at the same time.
“It’s a real place where you can make really, really, really good money and just be sick while you’re doing it,” Tara said.
‘I think it’s really great that I went into the hospitality industry and not back into my corporate job, because I’m just having a lot of fun.’
Holiday rates depend on the sector and the status of the employee – temporary, full-time or part-time – but the current agreement for hospitality workers is a 25 percent surcharge on top of the regular wage rate
The British expat explained that working on public holidays has helped her to travel.
Other social media users agreed with Tara, with many sharing the high amounts they earn while working on a public holiday.
“For me today, I’m at $130 an hour, 10 hours,” one person commented.
‘Three shifts this Easter weekend for €110 per hour!’ another wrote.
‘People who work on holidays deserve everything they get. At Easter I pay $94 an hour. Beautiful,” chimed in a third.
A fourth person working as a youth worker explained that they would earn $865 for an eight-hour shift on a public holiday, while two others stated that their public holiday rates were $89 and $96 per hour.
Although public holidays may vary between the country’s states and territories, Australia has a total of nine national holidays per year.
National holidays include New Year’s Day (January 1), Australia Day (January 26), Good Friday (March 29), Easter Saturday (March 30), Easter Sunday (March 31), Easter Monday (April 1), Anzac Day (April 25), First Christmas Day (December 25) and Boxing Day (December 26).