Bosses who make staff stay late without paying them any overtime have been breaking the law.

Employees must be paid for all hours they dedicate to work, which includes time spent opening or closing a store, under the Fair Work Act.

If a barista is required to be at work at 7.45am to prepare the cafe before it opens at 8am, then they should be paid from the time they arrive, according to the rules.

If a barista is required to be at work at 7.45am to prepare the cafe before it opens at 8am, then they should be paid from the time they arrive, according to the rules (stock image pictured)

Employees must be paid for all hours they dedicate to work, which includes time spent opening or closing a store, under the Fair Work Act (Stock image pictured)

'So if you've been finding your pay packet is always a bit light because your boss rounds down your hours to the nearest 15 or 30 minutes or asks you to work ''off the clock'', know this isn't OK,' the Fair Work Ombudsman shared on Facebook.

The organisation has been helping bust myths for young workers as many head out in search of employment for the summer months.

Another major myth that has been prove false is that employees don't need to be paid for time spent at meetings or training outside their paid work hours.

According to the Fair Work Act, if it is compulsory, then it is work.

'Employees are entitled to be paid for the time they are required to spend at any meeting or training,' the website states.

There are also rules around whether bosses can tell workers they can't have time off over Christmas and New Year period because it's 'too busy' is an 'unreasonable' excuse under the Fair Work Act.

Most workers in Australia are granted four weeks of annual leave, in addition to their sick or personal leave entitlements (Stock image)

Most full-time workers in Australia get four weeks annual leave a year, in addition to their sick or personal leave entitlements, while shift workers are entitled to five weeks off.

While the Fair Work Act does not specifically cover annual leave bans, it does ensure that employers can not 'unreasonably' refuse the holiday requests of their workers.

ANNUAL LEAVE MYTHS BUSTED: - Employers can not deny the annual leave requests of their workers without 'reason'. - Simply claiming that is a 'busy' time of the year may not be a good enough excuse for denying your leave request. - Despite the claims of some employers, there is no minimum or maximum amount of leave that can be taken. - All full-time and part-time employees are entitled to a minimum 10 paid sick or personal leave days annually. Advertisement

Whether a request is 'reasonable' depends on the individual case and depends on if an employee gives sufficient notice, and the nature of the business.

Despite many employees complaining of having extended leave knocked back, there is neither a minimum or maximum amount of leave that can be taken at any one time.

Full-time employees will continue to be paid during their annual leave, except in the instance where they and their employer agree to unpaid leave.

Their time off is paid at the normal hourly wage and they will not be paid overtime.

Annual leave requests must always be made in advance of the leave being taken and in most workplaces require the signature of both the employer and employee.



Different rules apply to different industries, particularly when it comes to how much accrued leave is considered 'excessive'.

In the construction industry, workers who have more than eight weeks accrued leave can apply for time off which must be approved by their employer.

This also applies to most hospitality workers, however only if they haven't already got leave pending.

Retail workers who have accrued more than eight weeks of leave are required to give at least eight weeks notice.

They must also take no less than one-week off at this time.