What is Mondayisation?
Mondayisation is the rule that moves a public holiday's entitlements to the following Monday (or Tuesday) when the calendar date falls on a Saturday or Sunday and the employee does not normally work weekends. It exists so employees who work weekdays don't miss out on a paid public holiday day off when the date happens to fall on their weekend.
The key principle: a public holiday is observed only once per employee. Whether that's on the calendar date or on the Mondayised date depends on which day the employee normally works, not on which day they happened to work. You never pay public holiday entitlements for both days for the same employee.
Which public holidays can be Mondayised?
Only the ones tied to a specific calendar date can move:
New Year's Day (1 January)
Day after New Year's Day (2 January)
Waitangi Day (6 February)
ANZAC Day (25 April)
Christmas Day (25 December)
Boxing Day (26 December)
The other public holidays (Labour Day, Matariki, King's Birthday, Easter Monday, Good Friday, regional anniversary days) always fall on a fixed day of the week, so Mondayisation doesn't apply.
The "otherwise working day" test
Mondayisation hinges on whether each day is an "otherwise working day" (OWD) for the employee. An OWD is a day the employee would normally have worked if it hadn't been a public holiday. It's based on the employee's regular work pattern, not on whether they actually worked the day in question.
This distinction matters: an employee who normally works Monday to Friday but happens to take leave on a Monday still has Monday as an OWD. An employee who normally has Saturdays off but picks up a one-off Saturday shift doesn't suddenly make Saturday an OWD.
How to work out which day applies to each employee
Look at whether the calendar date of the public holiday is an otherwise working day for the employee.
Calendar date is an OWD → the public holiday applies to the calendar date. No Mondayisation.
Calendar date is not an OWD, but the Monday is → the public holiday is Mondayised and applies to that Monday. If the employee works that Monday, they're entitled to time and a half and an alternative holiday, the same as any other public holiday worked.
Neither day is an OWD → the holiday is technically Mondayised, but no paid day off is owed because neither day is an OWD. They'd still get time and a half if they worked on one of the days, but no alternative holiday.
Both the calendar date and the Mondayised date are OWDs → the public holiday applies to the calendar date only. The Monday is treated as a regular working day. The employee does not get two public holidays.
Tuesdayisation
When two public holidays fall on consecutive weekend days, one of them shifts to Tuesday as they can't be on the same observed day. The rule: each public holiday's entitlements must land on a separate day.
This affects the Christmas/Boxing Day and New Year's Day/2 January pairs. The specific scenarios are:
When 25 December (Christmas Day) falls on a Saturday: Christmas Day is Mondayised to Monday 27 December. Boxing Day (26 December) is a Sunday, so it Tuesdayises to Tuesday 28 December.
When 25 December (Christmas Day) falls on a Sunday: Boxing Day falls on Monday 26 December and is observed on its calendar date. Christmas Day Tuesdayises to Tuesday 27 December (moved past Boxing Day so the two holidays don't overlap).
When 1 January (New Year's Day) falls on a Saturday: New Year's Day is Mondayised to Monday 3 January. 2 January is a Sunday, so it Tuesdayises to Tuesday 4 January.
When 1 January (New Year's Day) falls on a Sunday: 2 January falls on Monday and is observed on its calendar date. New Year's Day Tuesdayises to Tuesday 3 January (moved past 2 January so the two holidays don't overlap).
The same "applied only once" rule still holds: each public holiday is observed on either its calendar date or its shifted date for a given employee, never both.
Common questions
Do I need to pay public holiday entitlements for both the calendar date and the Mondayised date?
No. Public holiday entitlements only get applied once per employee. The holiday lands on either the calendar date or the Mondayised date, depending on which is an OWD for that employee, never both. If both days happen to be OWDs, the calendar date is the public holiday and the Monday or Tuesday is an ordinary day.
My employee normally works weekends. Is the holiday Mondayised for them?
No. If the calendar date is an OWD for them, that's their public holiday. They get paid time and a half for hours worked plus an alternative holiday (if the day is an OWD for them). The Monday is a regular working day.
My employee works Monday to Friday. What happens?
The holiday is Mondayised. Their public holiday entitlements apply to the Monday (or Tuesday). The Saturday or Sunday calendar date is just a regular non-working day for them.
My employee doesn't normally work weekends, didn't work the Saturday calendar date, but did work the Mondayised Monday. How do I pay them?
The Monday is their public holiday. Pay time and a half for the hours worked on Monday, and give them an alternative holiday (since Monday is an OWD for them). The Saturday is just a regular non-working day, so nothing is owed for that day.
A common mistake is to treat the Monday as an ordinary working day because "the public holiday was Saturday." For an employee whose OWDs are Monday to Friday, the public holiday is observed on Monday, not Saturday. That's the whole point of Mondayisation. The fact that they didn't work the Saturday is irrelevant because Saturday wasn't an OWD for them anyway.
My employee doesn't normally work weekends, but picked up a one-off Saturday shift on the calendar date. They didn't work the Monday. What do I pay?
Saturday isn't an OWD for them, so the public holiday is Mondayised to Monday. For the Saturday hours they worked, pay time and a half (this applies to any public holiday worked, regardless of whether it's an OWD). No alternative holiday for the Saturday because it isn't an OWD. The Monday is their observed public holiday, so pay them as you would for any public holiday they didn't work on an OWD.
What if my employee works both the Saturday and the Monday?
The public holiday is on the calendar date (Saturday). Pay them time and a half for working Saturday and provide an alternative holiday (if Saturday is an OWD). The Monday is paid at their normal rate with no alternative holiday.
What if the employee's work pattern varies?
You'll need to agree with the employee whether the public holiday date (or the Mondayised date) is a day they would otherwise be working. This determines which entitlements apply. The OWD test in the Holidays Act is the deciding factor.
Does Mondayisation affect shop trading restrictions?
No. Restricted trading rules always apply on the calendar date of the holiday, regardless of when the public holiday entitlements are observed.
For full scenario tables covering every combination of Saturday/Sunday calendar dates and weekend/weekday work patterns, refer to the Employment New Zealand guidance.