How to Calculate Leave Loading (With Examples)
Calculate leave loading step by step, with worked dollar examples at 17.5% on four weeks of leave across common Australian salaries.
Leave loading is calculated as a percentage of the base pay for the leave you take, most commonly 17.5%. Multiply your weekly base rate by the weeks of leave, then multiply that figure by 0.175. Whether you get a loading at all depends on your award, enterprise agreement or contract.
The formula, step by step
- Find your weekly base rate. Divide your annual salary by 52, or multiply your ordinary hourly rate by your ordinary weekly hours.
- Multiply it by the number of weeks of leave being paid. That is your base pay for the leave period.
- Multiply that base pay by 0.175. That is the loading.
- Add the loading to the base pay for the total that should reach your account.
Written out, loading equals your weekly base rate times the weeks of leave times 0.175. For the standard four weeks, with P as normal weekly pay, that is L = 0.175 × (P × 4).
Worked example: four weeks on a $75,000 salary
The weekly base rate is $75,000 ÷ 52, or $1,442.31. Four weeks of leave at that rate is base pay of $5,769.23.
Apply the loading and $5,769.23 × 0.175 = $1,009.62. The total leave payment comes to $6,778.85, about $1,010 more than base pay alone.
Take two weeks instead and both figures roughly halve, to $2,884.62 of base pay and $504.81 of loading, for a total of $3,389.42. The loading follows the weeks you actually take.
What four weeks looks like at other salaries
The percentage is fixed, so the dollar figure rises with the salary. Confirm your own rate first, because some agreements set a different percentage and some awards pay the higher of 17.5% and the penalties you would have earned.
| Annual salary | 17.5% loading ($) | 4 weeks base pay ($) | Total leave payment ($) |
|---|---|---|---|
| $60,000 | 807.69 | 4,615.38 | 5,423.08 |
| $70,000 | 942.31 | 5,384.62 | 6,326.92 |
| $80,000 | 1,076.92 | 6,153.85 | 7,230.77 |
| $90,000 | 1,211.54 | 6,923.08 | 8,134.62 |
| $100,000 | 1,346.15 | 7,692.31 | 9,038.46 |
Figures are gross, before tax. Leave loading is assessable income like the rest of your leave pay.
Not everyone gets a loading
Leave loading isn't a universal minimum standard. It's written into specific modern awards, enterprise agreements and contracts, and plenty of salaried or award-free roles have none at all.
Some annualised salaries set above the award rate absorb it instead of paying it separately. Check your own instrument before using these figures for payroll or budgeting, and see what leave loading is and where the entitlement comes from.
Loading when you leave a job
Accrued but unused annual leave is paid out when employment ends, and that payout typically includes loading where your award or agreement would have paid it on the leave itself. It's worked out the same way, on your final base rate for the weeks owing.
Where the award or agreement is silent on loading, only the base leave value is paid out. Ask payroll which basis was used for your final payment.
Because the loading follows the weeks you take, the dollar figure doesn't change with timing. How many days off those weeks buy does: the Leave Planner stacks leave against public holidays and long weekends.
Frequently asked questions
How do you calculate leave loading step by step?
Three multiplications. Weekly base rate, times the weeks of leave, times 0.175 gives the loading, which you then add to the base pay for the total.
Which equation gives leave loading at 17.5% over four weeks?
L = 0.175 × (P × 4), where P is normal weekly pay. Multiplying by 17.5 instead of 0.175 returns a figure a hundred times too large, which is the usual trap.
How much is 17.5% leave loading on four weeks of annual leave?
It depends on the salary. On $75,000 a year it's $1,009.62. For any salary, divide by 13 to get four weeks of base pay, then multiply by 0.175.
Is leave loading calculated on gross or net pay?
Gross. The loading applies to the base pay for the leave period before tax, and it's then taxed as income along with the rest of the payment.
Does leave loading get paid on unused leave when you leave a job?
Usually, where the award or agreement provided for it during employment. Some instruments carry no loading clause at all, and then only the base leave value is paid out.
Related tools
Picked for this page.
Date calculator
Count the days between dates, or add and subtract days, weeks and months.
Working days calculator
Count business days between dates, excluding your state's public holidays.
Weeks in a year
Compare weeks, working days and pay periods across calendar and financial years.
Week number calculator
Find a date's ISO week number, or look up the dates for a week and year.
