Businesses operating on temporarily reduced hours or changed conditions due to COVID-19
The most common work pattern we have observed in this group is where employers and employees have agreed to a temporary 20% reduction in hours, e.g. an employee who normally works a 40-hour week, works 32 hours during the lockdown. Their pay is made up of the government subsidy and the employer’s payroll.
Employment.govt.nz is clear that pre-COVID 'otherwise working days' should apply to this group, meaning if the employee would have worked on the public holiday prior to the lockdown, you will need to recognise the public holiday.
The method for calculating payment for the public holiday remains: Relevant Daily Pay, which is determined by what the employee would have earned, had they worked. Therefore, if reduced hours have been agreed to as part of the lockdown, the payment for the public holiday is based on the reduced hours.
If the employee is not required to attend work, they receive payment for the day, based on the reduced hours. If they are required to work, they receive time-and-a-half for the hours actually worked, plus a full day as an Alternative Holiday (day in lieu). If it is not possible to determine Relevant Daily Pay, then Average Daily Pay can be used.
The government has also stated that: “employers can use the wage subsidy to cover some or all of their employees’ wages, including pay for the upcoming public holidays.”
Therefore, you can use the wage subsidy money to cover the normal public holiday costs. The employee works their temporarily reduced hours over the agreed days of each Easter and ANZAC week and receives payment for these days, plus payment for the public holiday, based on the above calculations. The wage subsidy is used to cover these payments; any additional money is paid via company cashflow.
Businesses not operating at all; staff at home receiving the wage subsidy only.
As businesses are able to use the wage subsidy to cover public holidays, there is no change in pay for this group.
They are at home receiving the subsidy of $585.80 or $350 (or normal earnings if these are less than the wage subsidy). The payment covers any public holiday entitlement they might be eligible to receive.