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Question

How should timesheets for overnight shifts with sleepovers be managed when the shift extends into the next morning at the end of a pay period?

Answer

For awards that include sleepover provisions (e.g. Social, Community, Home Care, and Disability Services Industry Award MA000100), it’s important to manage timesheets correctly to ensure accurate pay run calculations.

If an employee works an overnight shift with a sleepover that extends into the morning of the end of the pay period: Approve the timesheet for the entire shift, including the hours worked the next morning contiguous with the sleepover.

This ensures the system recognises the shift as a single continuous shift and avoids incorrectly triggering rules. Taking the SCHADS award as an example, incorrect rules include the Broken Shift Rule or the Minimum Break Between Shifts Rule.

Example - Pay Period: 9th - 15th September.

15 Sep 4:00 PM–10:00 PM: Pre-sleepover hours.

15 Sep 10:00 PM–6:00 AM: Sleepover hours.

16 Sep 6:00 AM–8:00 AM: Post-sleepover hours.

In this case, the timesheet for the entire shift from 4:00 PM to 8:00 AM should be approved before processing the pay run. This ensures that the post-sleepover hours are recognised as part of the overnight shift.

By approving the timesheet in this manner, you can avoid unnecessary rule triggers and ensure compliance with award provisions and accurate system behaviour.

Pay run outcome: Pay Period: 9th - 15th September:

Pay Period: 16th - 22nd September

No broken shift rule was triggered during this pay period.