Learn about your workplace entitlements when daylight saving ends.
Where clocks go back one hour
Daylight saving time will end on Sunday 7 April 2024. Clocks go back one hour at 3am to 2am in:
- Australian Capital Territory
- New South Wales
- South Australia
- Tasmania
- Victoria.
Daylight saving doesn’t apply in all states and territories. There is no change to the time in:
- Northern Territory
- Queensland
- Western Australia.
What employees are paid if they work overnight
Employees should check their award, enterprise agreement or employment contract for terms about daylight saving. If it doesn’t say anything, all employees who work overnight when daylight saving starts are paid ‘by the clock’.
Daylight saving time ends with rolling the clock back from 3am to 2am. Employees who work an overnight shift will work one hour more but won’t be paid for that extra hour.
When daylight saving time started last year and the clock rolled forward an hour, employees working overnight worked one hour less but were paid for the full shift according to the clock.
Example: Working through the night when daylight saving time ends
Dave is a shiftworker in a factory. His usual shift over the weekend is 8.30pm on Saturday to 5am on Sunday. He works an 8 hour shift with a 30 minute unpaid break.
Dave doesn’t have an award or registered agreement that says anything about daylight saving.
During Dave’s weekend shift, daylight saving ends and the clock goes back one hour.
This means that while Dave works for 9 hours, he is paid for 8 hours of work ‘by the clock’.
Later in the year, if Dave is working when daylight saving starts, he will only work 7 hours but will be paid for 8 hours.
Tools and resources
Check your award or enterprise agreement for terms about daylight saving.
If you know your award, go to our List of awards page. Unsure of your award? Use our 3-step Find my award tool.
You can also learn more about daylight saving in our Library article Daylight saving in Australia.
