1. What is the Sick Pay Guarantee?
The Victorian Sick Pay Guarantee is an Australian-first initiative giving Victorian casual and contract workers in certain jobs up to 38 hours a year of sick and carer’s pay. Payments are made at the national minimum wage.
The Sick Pay Guarantee is a pilot program. It will run from 14 March 2022 until 30 June 2024.
For more information see the Sick Pay Guarantee Program Guidelines.
2. What is the last date I will be eligible for sick and carer’s pay?
If you successfully signed up to the Sick Pay Guarantee by 2:00 pm on Tuesday 7 May 2024, you are eligible for sick and carer’s pay until Friday 31 May 2024.
This means the last date you can miss work and be eligible for the Sick Pay Guarantee is Friday 31 May 2024.
3. What is the last date I can submit a claim?
The last date you can submit a claim is Sunday 30 June 2024.
You must submit all claims within 60 days of when you missed work and no later than 11:59 pm on Sunday 30 June 2024.
The Sick Pay Guarantee pilot program ends on 30 June 2024.
4. Which jobs are included?
Jobs included in the Sick Pay Guarantee pilot are:
- Food, hospitality and accommodation
- Retail, sales and supermarkets
- Factories, manufacturing and supermarket supply chains
- Administration, clerical and call centres
- Cleaning and laundry
- Beauty, fitness, tourism and outdoor recreation
- Taxi, rideshare and delivery driving
- Security
- Carers, aides, health and welfare support
- Farm, agriculture, forestry, gardening and animal care
- Arts and creative industries.
See the full list of eligible jobs.
The Sick Pay Guarantee pilot focuses on the industries with some of the highest rates of casual and contract workers who do not have access to sick pay, whose work hours are often unpredictable and low paid, and people who are more likely to experience hardship, such as people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, women and young people.
A consultation process with workers, unions, business and industry groups was undertaken in 2021 to inform the design of the Sick Pay Guarantee. For more information see the Public Consultation Summary Report.
5. How do I sign up for the Sick Pay Guarantee?
Registrations closed at 2:00 pm on Tuesday 7 May 2024.
You can no longer sign up for the Sick Pay Guarantee.
6. How do I claim sick and carer’s pay?
You can make a claim for sick and carer’s pay through Service Victoria.
The last date you can miss work and be eligible for the Sick Pay Guarantee is Friday 31 May 2024.
The last date you can submit a claim is Sunday 30 June 2024.
Learn more about how to make a claim(opens in a new window).
7. Can I claim sick pay if I have COVID-19?
You can’t claim both the Sick Pay Guarantee and COVID-19 support payments for the same period.
If you work in aged care or disability services and meet the eligibility requirements you should claim the aged care worker COVID-19 leave payment grant or the disability worker COVID-19 leave grant first.
8. What evidence do I need to provide when I make a claim?
When you submit a claim you must confirm that you missed work because you were sick or injured, or you were caring for someone who was sick or injured.
You may need to provide evidence to support your claim. The type of evidence will depend on your circumstances.
Learn more about evidence you may need to provide.
9. How much will I get paid?
The Sick Pay Guarantee provides casual and contract workers in certain jobs with up to 38 hours a year of sick and carer's pay.
Payments are made at the national minimum wage ($23.23 per hour as of 1 July 2023), regardless of whether you claim for a weekday, weekend or public holiday.
10. Do I have to pay the money back later?
No. This is a payment from the Victorian Government to help you take time off if you are sick or need to care for loved ones. You will not have to pay the money back.
The Sick Pay Guarantee is fully funded by the Victorian Government. There is no cost to you or your employer.
11. Do I have to report the payments in my tax return?
Sick Pay Guarantee payments are taxable if they are part of your income. Workers are encouraged to seek tax advice as it relates to your individual circumstances.
Find out more about income tax from the Australian Taxation Office.
12. Can I claim sick pay on the same day that I sign up?
You must have signed up to the Sick Pay Guarantee before you can make a claim.
Registrations closed at 2:00 pm on Tuesday 7 May 2024.
You can no longer sign up for the Sick Pay Guarantee.
After we approve your application (which can take up to five business days from when you sign up), you can start making claims.
You can backdate claims up to 60 days, but no earlier than the date you signed up. For example, if you signed up on 15 May 2022, the first date you can claim sick and carer’s pay for is 15 May 2022.
Learn more about how to make a claim.
13. How many hours can I claim at a time?
You can claim for a minimum of three hours and a maximum of 12 hours per day.
The last date you can miss work and be eligible for the Sick Pay Guarantee is Friday 31 May 2024.
You can claim all 38 hours in one application if you need to, but you must claim within 60 days of being absent from work and no later than 11:59pm on Sunday 30 June 2024.
Learn more about how to make a claim.
14. How many hours do I have left?
To find your claimable hours balance, log in to your Service Victoria account.
15. What is the difference between a contract worker and a casual worker?
Contractors have different rights and obligations to casual employees. This is because they provide services to another person or business, as opposed to being employed by that person or business.
Learn more about casual and contract workers.
16. I do contract jobs, so I don’t have a roster. How can I prove that I missed work?
You can claim the Sick Pay Guarantee if you are a contract worker who meets the eligibility requirements.
Submit your claim for the number of hours you were supposed to work in your contract job. If you need to submit evidence to support your claim, you can provide:
- a roster
- an offer of work, or
- a statutory declaration which includes your average hours worked.
Learn more about what you need to make a claim.
Learn more about what evidence you need to support your claim.
Find out how to calculate your average hours.
More information for contractors, sole traders and self-employed workers.
17. I signed up recently. When will I know if I am eligible for sick and carer’s pay?
If you signed up by 2:00 pm on Tuesday 7 May 2024, your application will be reviewed. We will notify you of the outcome by email.
After we approve your application (which can take up to five business days from when you sign up), you can start making claims.
You can backdate claims up to 60 days, but no earlier than the date you signed up. For example, if you signed up on 6 May 2024, the first date you can claim sick and carer’s pay for is 6 May 2024.
18. How do I get help?
To get help, you can:
- contact us
- call the Translating and Interpreting Service on 131 450 and ask for the Victorian Sick Pay Guarantee hotline
- read the information in languages other than English.
Updated