Allowances

Unsocial hours payments are payments that are additional to basic pay. If you work unsocial hours you may qualify for an allowance or payment.

Unsocial hours are hours worked outside of the standard working hours.

If you work unsocial hours you may qualify for an allowance or payment.

The types of attendance arrangements where additional payments may apply include:

overtime
on call or standby
planned essential services
sleepover
Saturday work
Sunday work
public holiday
night duty
twilight payment

Check with your line manager to see if any of these allowances or payments apply to you.

You can also check in the guidelines on terms and conditions of employment.

Overtime

Your line manager must approve any overtime before you work it.

Your eligibility for overtime payments and the rates that apply depend on your job, grade and staff category. Your manager may decide to grant you time off in lieu (TOIL) instead of payment. If you're unsure of how to apply for the TOIL you have been granted check with your line manager.

Part-time employees

If you work part-time you may also be entitled to overtime rates. To get overtime rates, you must work more hours than the standard weekly working hours for a full-time employee in that grade. Otherwise, you will be paid at flat rate for extra hours worked or you may be given time off in lieu.

On call and standby

Being on call or on standby means you must be available for a set period for emergency work that may come up. You will usually receive a fixed payment for this. If you are called out during this time, you may receive an additional payment. For details about your entitlements, check with your line manager.

Sleepover

If you work in a residential setting that provides care 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, you may be required to do sleepover duty. A sleepover means staying at your workplace for a continuous period of 8 hours or more between 11pm and 8am.

Information about sleepover payments is available in Change to Sleepover Hourly Rate Due to an Increase in National Minimum Wage (HR Circular 039 2020).

Saturday work

If you are required to work 5 days out of any 7, and one of those days is a Saturday, you are entitled to a Saturday allowance.

This is a fixed amount. It doesn't matter how many hours you work on the Saturday.

Sunday work

If you are required to work 5 days out of any 7, and one of those days is a Sunday, you are entitled to a Sunday premium payment. You will get double pay for each hour you work on that shift.

Public holiday

If you are required to work 5 days out of any 7, and one of those days is a public holiday, you are entitled to a public holiday premium payment. You will get double pay for each hour you work on that shift.

If the public holiday falls on a Saturday, you will not get the Saturday allowance in addition to the public holiday payment.

Night duty

Night duty is normally defined as hours worked between 8pm and 8am where you work at least 3 hours between midnight and 7am.

Different arrangements apply to non-consultant hospital doctors (NCHDS) who work night duty. See HR Circular 003/2014.

If you work night duty hours you will be paid time plus a quarter.

You're only eligible for this night duty premium if you're rostered for duty through the night as defined above. For example, you would not be paid the night duty premium if you work from 4pm to midnight.

If you work a night shift as defined above on a Sunday or public holiday, you will be paid time plus a quarter. This will be based only on your basic salary. It will not include your unsocial hours allowance for that shift.

Twilight payment

You will receive the twilight payment if you are employed in a grade approved for twilight payments and work between 8pm and the end of the day shift. The twilight payment is paid at time and one-sixth.

As part of the transfer of tasks process, nurses and midwives who work from 6pm to 8pm in acute hospitals and social care (including older person and intellectual disability) sectors, will be paid the twilight payment.