Unions launch bid to give Aussies an extra week of annual leave

Wednesday, 4 March 2026 08:41

Currently, most Aussies have around four weeks of annual leave a year.

Australians could get up to one-and-a-half months of leave per year under a new plan launched by the largest trade union in the country.

The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) have announced their bid to increase the annual leave given to working Aussies to five to six weeks, claiming Australians carry out over a month of unpaid work a year, citing figures from the Centre of Future Work.

They argue this leads to a higher rate of stress and burnout, which should be addressed.

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Currently, many working Australians have four to five weeks of annual leave per year.

"Getting back one of these weeks is fair and reasonable. It will mean a better rested and happier workforce," ACTU Secretary Sally McManus said.

"The majority of European countries have already moved beyond four weeks," she claimed, naming several European countries like France, Germany and Austria.

The ACTU will table the plans to the National Employment Standards (NES) as part of a parliamentary enquiry into the NES.

They say if the changes are approved, it will be the first increase in the minimum standard of annual leave since the 1970s.

McManus claims younger workers are doing the most unpaid work, and will benefit more from the changes.

"Younger workers – from 18 to 24 years old – most urgently need to see this burden start to lift. They are the ones doing the most unpaid work," she said.

The ACTU also claim the gap between productivity and real wages has widened, but concede increasing annual leave by a week will add an extra two per cent to employment costs.

However, they claim it would not have a negative impact on the overall economy, because workers would be more to stay in their jobs and would be more productive due to a lower rate of burnout and other fatigue factors.

The Business Council of Australia has been contacted for comment.

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