The Act affects four broad classes of stakeholder.

First, all employers and employees within Victoria. Section 10(1) expressly applies to “a person employed in Victoria” and overrides any contrary provision in contracts, awards or agreements (subject to the federal consistency clause). This captures the entire Victorian workforce, whether public or private sector, full-time, part-time or casual (though casual loading may interact with federal instruments).

Second, the Crown. Section 5 binds the Crown “not only in right of the State of Victoria, but also, so far as the legislative power of the Parliament permits, the Crown in all its other capacities.” This extends the Act’s operation to State Government departments, agencies and instrumentalities.

Third, local government. The definition of “Council” incorporates the Local Government Act 2020 meaning. The Schedule lists 29 metropolitan municipal councils; all others are non-metropolitan. Only non-metropolitan councils may invoke the s.8A Melbourne Cup Day substitution request procedure. Metropolitan councils have no equivalent statutory power under this Act.

Fourth, the banking and financial sector. By operation of s.9, every public holiday appointed under the Act is automatically a bank holiday for Commonwealth Bills of Exchange Act purposes. This directly affects clearing-house operations, cheque presentment deadlines and bank opening hours.

The Minister administering the Act (currently the Minister for Industrial Relations) holds the central discretionary powers under ss.7, 8 and 8A. The Governor in Council retains power to declare additional metropolitan municipal districts (s.3(2)) and to make regulations (s.11).

The Act creates few positive duties but several important rights and negative obligations.

Employees possess a statutory right to a public holiday or half-holiday “without loss of pay” where the holiday applies to them (s.10(1)(a)). This right is expressly preserved against contrary contractual or award terms, although it is subordinated to the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) and its instruments (s.10(1AA)). Employees who ordinarily work Monday–Friday receive no additional entitlement for weekend holidays unless they work (s.10(1)(c)).

Employers are under a corresponding obligation to provide the paid day off or, if the employee works, to pay at the rate required by any applicable federal instrument. Section 10(2) makes clear that employers may require work on a holiday provided the terms are lawful under the overriding federal regime.

The Minister holds broad discretionary powers: to add holidays (s.7(1)(a)), to cancel and substitute holidays (s.8(1)), and to respond to non-metropolitan council requests (s.8A). These powers must be exercised by Gazette notice, and the notices may be geographically or personally limited (ss.7(2), 8(2)).

Non-metropolitan councils have a statutory right to make a written request under s.8A. The request must satisfy three formal requirements: 90 days’ notice, specification of the substitute day(s), and statement of reasons. If the Minister grants the request, the substitution applies only to the identified part of the municipal district.

The Governor in Council may expand the list of metropolitan municipal districts by Order (s.3(2)), thereby altering which councils may or may not use the s.8A mechanism.

Finally, s.9 imposes an automatic legal consequence upon the banking sector: public holidays become bank holidays without further declaration.

The Public Holidays Act 1993 contains no offence provisions or civil penalty regimes. Enforcement of employee holiday entitlements occurs almost entirely through the federal fair work jurisdiction. Section 10(1AA) expressly renders the Victorian provision of “no effect” to the extent of inconsistency with the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth), modern awards, enterprise agreements or transitional instruments. Disputes about payment for public holidays are therefore resolved under the Fair Work Act’s dispute-resolution procedures, by the Fair Work Commission or by Federal Court action.

The only indirect “sanction” is the reputational and industrial consequence of failing to observe a Gazette notice issued under s.7 or s.8. Because such notices are legislative in character, a failure to observe them could ground an underpayment claim under federal law.

Ministerial decisions under ss.7, 8 or 8A are administrative decisions amenable to judicial review, but no reported cases appear in the endnotes or explanatory material.

The Act is deliberately designed to sit beneath the federal industrial relations system. The overriding clause in s.10(1AA) (inserted by the Fair Work (Commonwealth Powers) Act 2009) ensures that the National Employment Standards, modern awards and enterprise agreements prevail. The definition of “WR Act repeal day” in s.10(3) ties the provision to the Fair Work (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Act 2009 (Cth).

Section 9 expressly links the Victorian public holiday regime to the Bills of Exchange Act 1909 (Cth). The automatic declaration of bank holidays removes the need for separate Commonwealth action and ensures uniform treatment of negotiable instruments across Australia on Victorian public holidays.

Within Victorian law, the Act repealed the Bank Holidays Act 1958 (see long title and table of amendments). It amended the Public Sector Management Act 1992, Teaching Service Act 1981 and Shop Trading Act 1987 at the time of enactment, although those amendments have since been overtaken by later reforms.

The definition of “Council” and “metropolitan municipal district” now cross-reference the Local Government Act 2020 (s.3(1), as amended by No. 9/2020). The Schedule may be varied by Governor in Council order under s.3(2), creating a dynamic interface between local government boundaries and holiday observance.

The Act is also subject to the Interpretation of Legislation Act 1984 (Vic). The endnotes reproduce the standard interpretive provisions concerning headings, examples, punctuation and legislative items that apply to all Victorian statutes.

The version incorporates amendments up to 6 April 2020. Four changes since 2008 are particularly significant.

The Public Holidays Amendment Act 2008 (No. 55/2008) rewrote s.6, repealed spent provisions in s.7, substituted s.8, and amended s.10. It simplified the substitution regime and removed redundant ministerial powers.

The Public Holidays Amendment Act 2011 (No. 22/2011) inserted s.8A, giving non-metropolitan councils the ability to seek substitution of Melbourne Cup Day. The amendment responded to requests from regional councils that wished to align the local holiday with community events or avoid disruption on the Tuesday. Consequential changes were made to ss.8(1) and 8(3).

The Public Holidays Amendment Act 2019 (No. 29/2019) made the most visible alterations to the holiday list. It inserted Easter Sunday as a public holiday (new s.6(fa)), added the Friday before the AFL Grand Final (new s.6(ia)), and adjusted the Christmas and Boxing Day substitution rules (substituted s.6(k) and inserted s.6(ka) and (m)). These changes reflected contemporary community expectations around major sporting and religious events and aligned Victoria with some other jurisdictions.

Finally, the Local Government Act 2020 (No. 9/2020) updated the definition of “Council” with effect from 6 April 2020. This was a technical alignment rather than a substantive policy shift.

Each set of amendments was accompanied by a second-reading speech (reproduced in the endnotes) that emphasised modernisation, flexibility for regional Victoria, and maintenance of employee entitlements.

The endnotes and explanatory material contain no reference to any court challenges. The Act’s deliberate subordination to the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) has largely moved litigation into the federal sphere. No Victorian Supreme Court or Federal Court decisions are cited in the table of amendments or endnotes.

Controversies have instead played out in the political and industrial arena. The 2019 addition of the AFL Grand Final Friday was criticised by some business groups as creating an extra paid day off without corresponding productivity offset. Conversely, regional councils have used s.8A to shift Melbourne Cup Day, prompting occasional local debate about loss of a traditional public holiday. The interaction clause in s.10(1AA) has prevented constitutional or jurisdictional disputes between State and federal holiday entitlements, which was the explicit purpose of the 2009 amendments.

Most practitioners assume the holiday list in s.6 is immutable; it is not. Ministerial Gazette notices under ss.7 and 8 can override the statutory list for a particular year, yet these notices are rarely consolidated and must be located in the Victoria Government Gazette archive.

The s.8A power is available only to non-metropolitan councils listed outside the Schedule. Many suburban councils on the fringe of Melbourne (for example, Melton and Wyndham) are explicitly listed as metropolitan; their ability to vary Melbourne Cup Day is therefore statutorily precluded. Practitioners advising regional clients must check the current Schedule and any Governor in Council orders made under s.3(2).

Section 10(1AA) is a “read down” provision rather than a simple repeal. The Victorian entitlement continues to operate to the extent it is not inconsistent with federal law. In practice this means that for employees covered by federal instruments the federal rules on public holiday rates (often 200 % or 250 % for work performed) prevail, yet the underlying day-off entitlement remains anchored in State law. This dual operation can create confusion when drafting contracts that purport to “buy out” holidays.

Banking practitioners frequently overlook that s.9 deems Saturdays a bank holiday independently of the public holiday list. This interacts with the Bills of Exchange Act 1909 (Cth) time limits for presentment and can affect maturity dates even when no public holiday is involved.

Finally, the 90-day pre-condition in s.8A(2)(a) is strict. A non-metropolitan council that realises in August that it wishes to shift the first Tuesday in November has already lost the statutory power; the Minister cannot lawfully entertain the request. Early diary management is therefore essential for local government compliance officers.

Employers should maintain an annual public holiday calendar that incorporates the s.6 list, any Gazette notices issued under ss.7 or 8, and any s.8A substitutions that apply to their workplace location. Because notices can be geographically limited, a single statewide calendar is insufficient for businesses operating across metropolitan and non-metropolitan boundaries.

Human-resources policies must expressly acknowledge the primacy of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth). Template contracts and enterprise agreements should cross-reference the National Employment Standards rather than restate the Victorian Act. Where an employee is required to work on a public holiday, the applicable federal penalty rate or TOIL regime must be applied; reliance on the Victorian Act alone will be insufficient.

Payroll systems need logic to distinguish between “holiday falls on weekend – no entitlement” (s.10(1)(c)) for Monday–Friday workers and the substituted Monday or Tuesday that does attract full entitlement. Failure to code this distinction is a frequent source of underpayment claims.

Local government officers seeking to use s.8A must prepare a written request containing the three mandatory elements and dispatch it at least 90 clear days before Melbourne Cup Day. The request should articulate a community-benefit reason (for example, alignment with a local festival) to maximise prospects of Ministerial approval. Once approved, the council must communicate the substituted day to residents and businesses within the affected part of the municipal district.

Public sector agencies bound by the Act must ensure their industrial agreements incorporate the paid holiday entitlement while remaining compliant with the Public Administration Act 2004 (Vic) and any relevant enterprise bargaining agreements.

All parties should monitor the Victoria Government Gazette each year for notices under ss.7 and 8. There is no central consolidated register; failure to sight a notice does not excuse non-compliance. Subscription to Gazette alerts or engagement of a regulatory watch service is prudent for larger employers.

Finally, because the Act is short but cross-referenced to federal law, compliance training should focus on the interplay rather than the Victorian text in isolation. A one-page decision tree answering “Which law governs our public holiday obligations this year?” is often more valuable than reprinting the entire statute.