Ask Shaye
Ask Shaye: Overtime and 12 hour shifts
I work in a public hospital and our department is about to start 12 hour shifts. But due to so many vacant positions, I am worried we’ll just end up doing overtime on top of the shift.
Clause 5(v)(j) of the Public Health System Nurses’ and Midwives’ (State) Award explicitly sets out that “no overtime shall be worked in conjunction with a 12 hour shift”. You may elect to work an overtime shift on a rostered day off, but overtime by way of an extension to the 12 hour shift is not permitted. Remember, the minimum break between 12 hour shifts is to be 11.5 hours.