Casual engagement is lawful in Papua New Guinea, and Division 1 of Part III of the Employment Act (Chapter 373) takes only two short sections to deal with it. The second of those sections is the one that matters.
Section 9 — the permission
Subject to this Act a person may be employed as a casual worker.
Three words carry the weight: subject to this Act. Casual engagement is permitted, but it does not sit outside the statute. The provisions on hours of work, payment of wages, deductions, health and welfare, and the employment of young persons apply to a casual worker in the ordinary way.
Section 10 — six days in a month
Where a casual worker is employed by the same employer for more than six days in any one month, he shall be deemed to be an oral contract employee under Division 3.
Read that carefully. It is:
- Automatic. “Shall be deemed” — nothing needs to be signed, claimed or agreed.
- Per employer, per month. Seven days spread across a month for one employer is enough. The days need not be consecutive.
- Not defeated by the label. Continuing to call the worker a casual, or to pay a “casual rate”, does not stop the deeming.
The single exception is section 10(2): the deeming does not apply to a casual worker employed under the provisions of a registered award covering a specific type of occupation.
What changes when the deeming bites
| Casual worker | Oral contract employee | |
|---|---|---|
| Notice to end | None either way — s 35(4) | Section 34 periods |
| Written record of terms | Not required by s 15 | Required at engagement — s 15(1) |
| Contract period | Day to day | The wage period — s 16 |
| Automatic renewal | No | Yes — s 17 |
| Recreation leave | Depends on continuity of service | Accrues with continuous service |
| Sick leave | Depends on continuity of service | Accrues under Division 4 |
The change in the evidential position is as important as any of these. Once the worker is an oral contract employee, section 15(2) applies: if a dispute arises about the terms and the employer cannot produce the written record required by section 15(1), the employee’s statement of the terms is conclusive evidence of them, unless the employer satisfies the Secretary or an Arbitration Tribunal to the contrary.
Section 35(4) — the full day’s pay protection
A casual employee’s contract may be terminated by either party without notice. But where the employer terminates for any reason other than a ground in section 36(1), the casual employee shall be paid for a full day’s work on the day of termination — even if fewer than eight hours were worked.
So a casual sent home at 10 a.m. because the work ran out is entitled to the full day. A casual sent home for misconduct falling within section 36(1) is not. The distinction is worth insisting on, and worth an employer recording.
Keeping count — practical advice
- Write down every day you work — the date, the hours, and who engaged you. A phone note is enough.
- Count by calendar month, per employer. Once you pass six days in a month, you are an oral contract employee for the purposes of the Act.
- Ask for the section 15(1) record. The employer must make a written record of the terms at engagement.
- Keep your pay records. Section 82 requires a statement of wages.
A roster that runs a “casual” two days a week converts that worker into an oral contract employee in the first month. From that point notice under section 34 is required to end the engagement, and the record-keeping obligations in section 15 apply.
Employers who rely on a long-standing casual pool should either roster within the six-day limit, engage under a registered award covering the occupation, or accept that Division 3 applies and document accordingly. Treating the deeming as optional is the most common way an otherwise lawful termination becomes an unlawful one.
The long-term “casual”
Where a worker has been engaged as a casual for months or years, the deeming in section 10(1) will have operated in every month in which more than six days were worked. That has consequences for continuity of service under section 60, and therefore for leave entitlements, and it means notice was required each time the engagement was ended.
Anyone in that position who has been let go without notice should take advice — from the Public Solicitor, or a firm from the law firms directory — and should bring their record of days worked with them.
Sources
- Employment Act (Chapter 373) — ss 9, 10, 15, 16, 17, 34, 35, 36, 60, 82
- Industrial Relations Act — PacLII 1986 Revised Edition
- Kinaram v Vanimo Forest Products Ltd [2011] PGNC 137; N4413
- Mamugoba v New Britain Palm Oil Ltd [2024] PGNC 419; N11082
Before relying on anything here, read the current text of the Employment Act (Chapter 373) and check for later amendments. If a decision matters to you, get advice — start with the Office of the Public Solicitor, or find a firm in the law firms directory.