Maximum weekly hours in Australia
The National Employment Standards set a maximum working week, and let an employer ask for more when the extra hours are reasonable. What that means for a roster, and what to check before rostering a long week.
General information only, not legal advice. Rules differ between awards, agreements, contracts and states, and what applies depends on the employee. Check the official source, and ask a workplace relations professional when it matters.
The short answer
Under the National Employment Standards, an employer must not request or require a full-time employee to work more than 38 hours in a week unless the additional hours are reasonable. For other employees, the limit is the lesser of 38 hours and their ordinary hours of work.
An employee can refuse additional hours that are not reasonable. Awards and agreements can allow hours to be averaged over a longer period, and employees not covered by one can agree in writing to average their hours over up to 26 weeks.
| Employee | Hours before the extra hours must be reasonable |
|---|---|
| Full-time | 38 hours in a week |
| Part-time, with 20 ordinary hours | 20 hours, the lesser of 38 and their ordinary hours |
| Hours averaged under an award or agreement | An average of 38 over the averaging period |
Official sources
Check the rule against these, in their current versions, before relying on it.
| Source | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Fair Work Act 2009 | Sections 62 and 63, maximum weekly hours and averaging |
| Fair Work Ombudsman: hours of work | Maximum weekly hours, reasonable additional hours and averaging |
Worked examples
General examples of where to look. They are not advice about any particular employee.
| Situation | What to check |
|---|---|
| A full-time chef is rostered 38 hours and asked to cover a Saturday as well | The Saturday is additional hours, so whether it is reasonable matters, and the award decides whether it is overtime |
| A part-time assistant with 24 agreed hours is offered 30 | The six extra hours are additional hours for them, even though the week is under 38 |
| A site works 76 hours over a fortnight in uneven weeks | Whether the award or agreement allows hours to be averaged, and over what period |
Employer checklist
- Know each person’s ordinary hours, not only whether they are full-time
- Treat hours beyond them as additional hours, and ask rather than assume
- Check the award for overtime, and for how hours may be averaged
- Keep a record of what was asked, and the answer
- Look again at anybody rostered long weeks back to back
What Roster Flow records, and what it does not decide
- Weeks longer than the ordinary week you set, in the reports
- The published roster, and every change to it with who made it and when
- The approved hours for each week, as they went to payroll or were exported
- Whether a request, a refusal or a number of hours is reasonable
- Whether hours are overtime, and what overtime is paid
- Whether an averaging arrangement is allowed
Review log
13 September 2026: written by Roster Flow from the structure of the National Employment Standards and modern awards.
18 September 2026: every statement on this page checked against the official sources it names, by Roster Flow. It is general information, not advice from a workplace relations professional.
What that check covers, and what to confirm for your own situation:
- How the weekly limit applies to casual employees
- The written agreement to average hours for employees not covered by an award or agreement, and the 26 week maximum
- That every source link opens the current version of the source
Questions
What do the rules say about maximum weekly hours?
Under the National Employment Standards, an employer must not request or require a full-time employee to work more than 38 hours in a week unless the additional hours are reasonable. For other employees, the limit is the lesser of 38 hours and their ordinary hours of work.
Is there more to maximum weekly hours than that?
An employee can refuse additional hours that are not reasonable. Awards and agreements can allow hours to be averaged over a longer period, and employees not covered by one can agree in writing to average their hours over up to 26 weeks.
Does Roster Flow decide maximum weekly hours for me?
No. It does not interpret an award and it does not work out what anybody is paid. Whether a request, a refusal or a number of hours is reasonable stays with the business and its own advisers, and this page is general information rather than advice about your situation.
Where do the rules on maximum weekly hours come from?
Fair Work Act 2009, covering sections 62 and 63, maximum weekly hours and averaging. Fair Work Ombudsman: hours of work, covering maximum weekly hours, reasonable additional hours and averaging. Read them in their current versions before you rely on anything here, because they change.