Last updated: April 20, 2026
In many workplaces, employers need to adjust work hours and rosters from time to time due to factors such as customer demand, seasonality, staffing levels, unexpected absences or operational needs.
Understanding the requirements for changing hours of work rosters can help employers and employees get the balance right between operational flexibility and certainty of working conditions.
No one-size-fits-all approach
There is no single rule that applies to every workplace when it comes to changing work hours or rosters.
Whether an employer can make a change, and the process for doing so, usually depends on a number of factors, including:
- whether the employees affected by the change are full-time, part-time or casual,
- the requirements in any award, enterprise agreement or employment contract, including whether consultation or notice obligations are triggered,
- the nature of the proposed change (e.g. does it involve a change to regular rosters or ordinary hours? Does it involve the introduction of additional hours/overtime?)
How employment status affects work hours
Full-time employees
Full-time employees usually work regular and ongoing hours within a defined span of ordinary hours set by an award or agreement. While some variation may occur from time to time, there is generally an expectation of stability.
Occasional short-term changes may be permissible, subject to overtime provisions where relevant.
Ongoing or permanent changes to ordinary hours will often trigger consultation obligations and may also require agreement, particularly where established patterns of work are altered.
Part-time employees
Part-time employment is typically structured around agreed regular days and hours of work. Under most modern awards, these agreed arrangements must be recorded in writing.
Because predictability is a core feature of part-time work, changes to ordinary hours commonly require consultation and, in many cases, written agreement between the employer and employee.
Casual employees
Casual employment generally involves work being offered on an as-needed basis, with no guarantee of any particular number or pattern of hours week-to-week.
Casual employees’ hours can generally be changed more easily than those of permanent employees. Under many modern awards, the requirements for changing hours of work and rosters that apply to permanent employees (such as minimum notice periods or the payment of penalty rates for changes at short notice) do not apply to casuals.
However, changes to casual hours may still be regulated in limited circumstances. For example, under many awards, if a casual employee attends work for a shift, they are entitled to payment for a minimum period. If an employer decides to shorten shift after the casual employee starts work for the day, the minimum payment is still payable.
Consultation and notice obligations under awards
Consultation
Most modern awards contain consultation obligations for employers who are proposing to vary regular rosters or ordinary hours of work.
These consultation obligations generally require employers to notify affected employees of the proposed change and the reasons for it, provide information about what is changing and when, invite employees to give their views about the likely impact of the change, and consider those views before implementing the change.
Consultation does not necessarily mean agreement must be reached, but the employer must genuinely engage with employees and consider their feedback before implementing the change.
Rostering requirements
Some awards include specific rostering provisions, such as requirements to display rosters in advance and minimum notice periods for roster changes.
Some awards also provide for the payment of penalty rates in some circumstances where an employer does not give enough notice of a roster change.
Rostering provisions differ widely between awards, so it is important for employers and employees to understand the specific rules that apply to their circumstances.
Non-compliance with award obligations
Failure by an employer to follow the consultation and rostering requirements in the applicable award can lead to disputes and potentially enforcement action by the Fair Work Ombudsman.
Obligations in employment contracts
In some cases, employment contracts will include provisions about the employee’s days and hours of work.
If the employer wants to change the days or hours of work to an arrangement that the contract does not already cover, the employer may need the employee’s agreement to make the change.
Changes involving additional hours
An employer may seek to change employees’ hours by asking them to work additional hours on top of their ordinary hours - for example, during peak demand periods.
Where an employer wants an employee to work additional hours, the National Employment Standards require that these hours must be reasonable. Employees are entitled to refuse to work unreasonable additional hours.
There is a range of factors that are taken into account when determining if additional hours are reasonable, including the employee’s personal circumstances, whether the employee is entitled to overtime rates and the notice given by the employer of the additional hours.
Awards and agreements often include entitlements to overtime rates, overtime meal allowances and breaks where employees work overtime in addition to their ordinary hours.
Key takeaways
- Changing hours and rosters is often permitted, but sometimes a set process must be followed. For example, awards commonly require consultation and notice before changes to regular rosters or ordinary hours are implemented.
- Employment type and award coverage can make a difference. Full-time, part-time and casual arrangements are treated differently, and award provisions should be considered.
- Clear communication reduces disputes. Early consultation, checking award requirements and giving reasonable notice help balance operational needs with certainty for workers.
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