Leave for Employees

You can access the portal on a tablet or computer at portal.payhero.co.nz. Learn more about accessing and using the portal here: Employee Portal, or get in touch with your payroll administrator if you have any questions about your access.

The Leave tab provides you with all the information you need to understand your leave and holiday entitlements. The Leave Balances section provides an initial overview of your Holiday and Other Leave Available.

Holiday Leave Available

Current Leave Due - The balance of Annual Leave that's currently due. Leave becomes due when you cross your employment anniversary each year, and the Current Leave Due balance is the remaining amount of this balance, after deducting any leave you've taken.  This is usually displayed in Days, but may be displayed in Hours for employees with certain patterns of work. 

Estimated Leave in Advance - The Estimated Leave in Advance balance provides an estimate of how much leave you could be entitled to since your last anniversary. This is based on how long it's been since your last anniversary, and your current work pattern. Many employers are happy for their employees to take this type of leave in advance of it becoming due, but check with your employer if you're unsure of their leave in advance policy. This is usually displayed in Days, but may be displayed in Hours for employees with certain patterns of work. 

Click the button to view the full details for each balance:

Other Leave Available

Sick - Your current balance of Sick Leave available, which is the total of any sick leave that has become due, less any sick leave you've taken. Sick leave only becomes due from crossing anniversaries. Your first anniversary is 6 months after your employment start date, then each anniversary is yearly from that date on. 

Alternative - Your current balance of Alternative Leave days (also known as days in lieu). These are generally accrued if you work on a public holiday, depending on your work pattern at that time, although you may have an agreement with your employer to accrue alternative days for other types of work as well.

Requesting Leave 

You can view and submit your leave requests on the yearly calendar. To request leave, click on the first date of your leave request, then click on the last date of your leave request.

Days in the calendar are colour-coded based on the type of leave requested/being selected:

Selecting days for a request - The start and end dates will display as light green, and the days between start and end dates will display as light blue.

Submitted requests - The colour showing will reflect the leave type requested (these may vary depending on your company settings). 

Once the days have been selected, a pop up will appear letting you set the details of the request. 

Confirm the following details, then click Request and the leave will be submitted for a manager or administrator to approve.

Leave Type - Select the type of leave you wish to request from the dropdown. Learn more below about the different types of leave below. Note that the types of leave available to you may vary depending on your company's settings. 

Start & End - Ensure the first and last date you will not be at work are selected. Provided PayHero knows your usual work days, this date range can cross days you don't usually work as well. For example, if you work Monday - Friday and will be away for two weeks, you can request leave for the full two weeks and any weekends will not be counted as leave days. 

Part Day - The part day field will only appear if the start and end date of your request are both on the same day. If you're only needing part of the day off, select 1/4, 1/2 or 3/4 days from the dropdown. If only the first or last day of a longer request will be a part day, you'll need to enter two separate requests - one for the part day, and one for the rest of the leave period.   

Leave Details - The details and balances shown will depend on the type of leave you've selected. Click on the buttons below to learn more about what details are displayed for each type of leave. 

Once an administrator has approved or declined the leave, you'll receive an email confirmation. You can also click on the request to review the details, including the status of the request. Note that declined requests will be automatically hidden and can not be viewed.

You can access the mobile app at mobile.payhero.co.nz via your preferred browser on your mobile phone. Learn more about accessing and using the mobile app here: Employee Mobile App, or get in touch with your payroll administrator if you have any questions about your access.

From the Leave screen, you can manage your leave requests and view your leave balances.

Leave Balances

Tap the  button in the top right to view an overview of your current leave balances.

Holiday Leave Available

Current Leave Due - The balance of leave that's currently due. Leave becomes due when you cross your employment anniversary each year, and the Current Leave Due balance is the remaining amount of this balance, after deducting any leave you've taken.  This is usually displayed in Days, but may be displayed in Hours for employees with certain patterns of work. 

Estimated Leave In Advance - The Estimated Leave in Advance balance provides an estimate of how much leave you could be entitled to since your last anniversary. This is based on how long it's been since your last anniversary, and your current work pattern. Many employers are happy for their employees to take this type of leave in advance of it becoming due, but check with your employer if you're unsure of their leave in advance policy. This is usually displayed in Days, but may be displayed in Hours for employees with certain patterns of work. 

Other Leave Available

Sick - Your current balance of sick leave available, which is the total of any sick leave that has become due, less any sick leave you've taken. Sick leave only becomes due from crossing anniversaries. Your first anniversary is 6 months after your employment start date, then each anniversary is yearly from that date on. 

Alternative - Your current balance of alternative days (also known as days in lieu). These are generally accrued if you work on a public holiday, depending on your work pattern at that time, although you may have an agreement with your employer to accrue alternative days for other types of work as well.

Requesting Leave

Use the  button to create a new leave request. Confirm the following details, then tap the  button, then Save Leave Request and the leave will be submitted for a manager or administrator to approve.

Leave Type - Select the type of leave you wish to request from the dropdown. Learn more below about the different types of leave below. Note that the types of leave available to you may vary depending on your company's settings. 

Start & End - Ensure the first and last date you will not be at work are selected. Provided PayHero knows your usual work days, this date range can cross days you don't usually work as well. For example, if you work Monday - Friday and will be away for two weeks, you can request leave for the full two weeks and any weekends will not be counted as leave days. 

Part Day - The part day field will only appear if the start and end date of your request are both on the same day. If you're only needing part of the day off, select 1/4, 1/2 or 3/4 days from the dropdown. If only the first or last day of a longer request will be a part day, you'll need to enter two separate requests - one for the part day, and one for the rest of the leave period.   

Request Information - The details and balances shown will depend on the type of leave you've selected. Click on the buttons below to learn more about what details are displayed for each type of leave. 

Once an administrator has approved or declined the leave, you'll receive an email confirmation. You can also tap into the request to review the details, including the status of the request. Note that declined requests will be automatically hidden and can not be viewed.

In addition to accessing your leave balances via the PayHero Portal or Mobile App, your administrator may have enabled leave balances on your payslips.

Important: The balances shown are based on the time the payslip was downloaded (the time and date displayed at the bottom of the payslip). This means that downloading a fresh payslip for an old pay will show your current balances. To view the original balances, find the original payslip you were emailed or contact your administrator.

The following balances may display:

Annual Leave

Days Per Week/Hours Per Week - The days or hours per week you're currently working. This may be based on a specific work pattern set by your employer, or based on your recent work history. See the FAQ 'What does 'Calculated from Work Pattern' or 'Calculated from Review Period' mean?' below for more information.

Annual Leave Due - The balance of leave that's currently due. Leave becomes due when you cross your employment anniversary each year, and the Annual Leave Due balance is the remaining amount of this balance, after deducting any leave you've taken.  This is displayed in Weeks, and then also displayed in another unit based on your current work pattern - usually into Days, but may be displayed in Hours for employees with certain patterns of work. 

Estimated Leave in Advance - The Estimated Leave in Advance balance provides an estimate of how much leave you could be entitled to since your last anniversary. This is based on how long it's been since your last anniversary, and your current work pattern. Many employers are happy for their employees to take this type of leave in advance of it becoming due, but check with your employer if you're unsure of their leave in advance policy. This is displayed in Weeks, and then also displayed in another unit based on your current work pattern - usually into Days, but may be displayed in Hours for employees with certain patterns of work. 

Estimated Leave Available - The combined total of Annual Leave Due and Estimated Leave in Advance. This is displayed in Weeks, and then also displayed in another unit based on your current work pattern - usually into Days, but may be displayed in Hours for employees with certain patterns of work. 

Other Leave

Sick Leave - Your current balance of sick leave available, which is the total of any sick leave that has become due, less any sick leave you've taken. Sick leave only becomes due from crossing anniversaries. Your first anniversary is 6 months after your employment start date, then each anniversary is yearly from that date on. 

Alternative Leave - Your current balance of alternative days (also known as days in lieu). These are generally accrued if you work on a public holiday, depending on your work pattern at that time, although you may have an agreement with your employer to accrue alternative days for other types of work as well.

Time Bank - The Time Bank balance will only display for salaried employees who have had Time Bank enabled by their administrator. 

The FAQ below helps with some common troubleshooting, or you can reach out to your payroll administrator if you're stuck.

Why can't I request leave?

Administrators can choose to disable requests for certain types of leave. If they've disabled all leave types, you won't be able to request leave and will need to contact your manager or administrator directly.

Why can't I request certain types of leave? 

Administrators can choose to disable requests for certain types of leave, which will result in some leave types not appearing in the dropdown for you to select. You can contact your manager or administrator to check whether you should be able to record that type of leave. 

I haven't taken any leave, why has my balance changed?

This article has information about why your balances may have changed without taking any leave: I haven't taken any annual leave, so why has my leave balance changed?

Alternatively, see 'Why has the leave balance on my payslip changed when I downloaded a fresh copy?'.

Why is my leave request asking me to enter hours?

Some employees may be set up with less detailed work patterns, which means that PayHero doesn't know what days you work. As a result, you'll be asked to specify how many hours you're taking off during your leave period. If you're not sure how to enter this, check in with your payroll administrator. 

What do I do if my balances don't look correct?

If you have any concerns about your leave balances, reach out to your payroll administrator for more information. 

What does 'Calculated from Work Pattern' or 'Calculated from Review Period' mean?

The Holidays Act specifies that leave in New Zealand should be managed in weeks. In order to translate your balance in weeks into a more useful figure (days or hours), PayHero needs to know how many days or hours you work in your normal work pattern. 

When viewing your detailed leave balances, you'll see the term 'Calculated from Work Pattern' or 'Calculated from Review Period'. This refers to the method that has been used to determine how many days or hours per week your leave is currently based on.

Calculated from Work Pattern - This means your administrator has specified a work pattern for you, and your leave calculations are based on this figure. If the Days per Week or Hours per Week shown don't appear correct, have a chat with your payroll administrator about whether that is set correctly.

Calculated from Review Period - This means your work pattern is variable, so your days per week are being calculated based on an average over a recent period. This is usually 8 weeks, but your administrator may have elected a different period for the average to be calculated over. 

Why can't I see leave balances on my payslip? 

Leave balances on payslips need to be enabled by an administrator, and they also have a choice of whether Sick Leave is included. If you can't see balances on your payslips and would like to, have a chat with your payroll admin. 

Why has the leave balance on my payslip changed when I downloaded a fresh copy?

The balances shown on your payslip are based on the time the payslip was downloaded (the time and date displayed at the bottom of the payslip). This means that downloading a fresh payslip for an old pay will show your current balances. To view the original balances, find the original payslip you were emailed or contact your administrator.