Section 9 - Travel and location-based conditions

Updated: 6 May 2024

Usual location of work

  1. An employee’s usual location of work will be the designated location identified in the Employee’s letter of offer or other engagement documents. If no designated office location was specified on engagement, the Electoral Commissioner may specify a designated office location by advising the employee in writing.
  2. The Electoral Commissioner may designate a new temporary or permanent usual location of work for an employee by advising the employee in writing. This designation will be made in reference to the consultation provisions (clauses 450 to 469) and the AEC’s operational requirements.
  3. The agency and employee may agree to vary the employee’s designated office location on a temporary or permanent basis.

Transport

  1. Generally, employees are responsible for transporting themselves to and from their usual location of work, at their own expense.
  2. The Electoral Commissioner may approve the use of official transport, including a taxi service, where an employee is directed to work additional hours outside the bandwidth.

Excess travelling time

  1. The Electoral Commissioner may approve payment for the difference between the time the employee spends travelling to and from the temporary location of work and the time travelling to and from their usual location of work provided the:
    1. employee is at or below an APS 4.2; and
    2. the employee is directed by the Electoral Commissioner to temporarily work away from their usual location of work; and
    3. the total additional hours travelling are in excess of 1.5 hours per day or 2.5 hours per week.
  2. Excess travelling time payments will be based on the employee’s classification, capped at an APS 3.4. The rate of payment will be single time from Monday to Saturday, and time and a half for Sundays and public holidays.

Excess fares

  1. An employee will be entitled to reimbursement of excess fares when the:
    1. employee is directed by the Electoral Commissioner to temporarily work away from their usual location of work; and
    2. the cost of travel to and from the employee’s temporary location of work is greater than the cost of travel to and from the employee’s usual location of work.
  2. Excess fares are not reimbursed where the employee is receiving travel allowance or has moved in anticipation of a permanent reassignment of duties.

Travel

  1. The AEC will meet the costs of domestic or overseas travel for an employee undertaking official business approved by the Electoral Commissioner (official travel).
  2. The Electoral Commissioner may approve the reimbursement of any reasonable expenses actually and necessarily incurred while undertaking official travel. Evidence may be requested to support this.

Domestic travel

Travel allowance

  1. Subject to clause 427, an employee required to be absent from the city/town that is their usual location of work on official business overnight, but for no more than 21 days, will receive a travel allowance in accordance with the applicable Australian Taxation Office Determination.
  2. Subject to clause 427, an employee who is required to be absent from the city/town that is their usual location of work on official business for a period of at least 10 hours, but is not absent overnight, will receive a part-day travel allowance of $62.
  3. For trips in excess of 21 days, but less than 3 months, the Electoral Commissioner may consider paying a living away from home allowance, in accordance with the AEC’s Travel Policy.
  4. Where an employee will be accommodated in private, non-commercial accommodation, such as the home of a family member or friend, an accommodation allowance will be paid to the employee equivalent to a third of the accommodation rate otherwise payable.

Motor Vehicle Allowance

  1. Motor Vehicle Allowance (MVA) is payable where an employee is approved to use a private vehicle for official purposes.
  2. The rate of MVA will be equivalent to the rate per kilometre in accordance with the applicable Australian Taxation Office Determination.
  3. Where an alternative method of travel is available, and an employee seeks, and is approved to use, a private vehicle to travel for the purpose of undertaking official business, MVA will be capped at the cost of the lowest practical fare of the day of travel.

Travel time

  1. Travel time on official business will be undertaken within the bandwidth unless otherwise approved by the Electoral Commissioner.
  2. Time spent travelling by APS-level Employees on official business may be recorded as hours of work. Ordinarily, this travel time will be regarded as flextime on an hour-for-hour basis unless overtime applies.

Overseas travel

  1. Subject to clauses 427, 439 and 440, an employee who undertakes travel overseas on official business will be paid an overseas travel allowance. This allowance is set in reference to the Australian Taxation Office “Reasonable travel and overtime meal allowance expense amounts” or any relevant successor determination.
  2. Where an employee travels overseas on behalf of another organisation, the entitlements will be as agreed between the Electoral Commissioner and the other organisation.
  3. The Electoral Commissioner may determine other conditions of service for Employees working overseas on a long term posting. This will be based on the principle of covering all reasonable expenses incurred while undertaking AEC business.

Dependant care while travelling

  1. Subject to the provision of satisfactory evidence, the Electoral Commissioner may approve the reimbursement of reasonable and additional costs incurred for dependant care arrangements, where the AEC requires an employee to:
    1. be away from the city of region that is their usual place of work outside of normal working hours; or
    2. travel overseas, interstate, or intrastate, exclusive of an employee working or travelling within the city or region that is their usual place of work.

Clothing allowance

  1. An employee who is required to travel on official business, for periods of at least 7 days, and no longer than 6 months, to a locality that the Electoral Commissioner determines has a climate greatly different from that of their usual place of work may claim up to $106.00 for expenditure on clothing once every 3 years for travel to the same or similar location.

Relocation assistance

  1. The Electoral Commissioner may approve financial relocation assistance for an employee who is required to relocate:
    1. on engagement with the AEC;  
    2. as part of an ongoing reassignment; or
    3. for a period of 13 weeks or more.
  2. Reasonable expenses associated with the relocation include:
    1. the cost of transport of the employee, their dependents and partner by the most economical means;
    2. removal expenses, namely the reimbursement of reasonable incurred costs of the removal of furniture and household effects of the employee, dependants and partner;
    3. temporary accommodation costs at the new location;
    4. the reimbursement of the cost of the insurance premium based on a reasonable replacement value; and
    5. the reasonably incurred expenses in kennelling and transport of pets, up to the amount specified in the APS Award.
  3. Additional relocation assistance may be considered by the Electoral Commissioner’s discretion.

Remote localities

  1. This clause only applies to employees:
    1. who were residing at a remote locality on or before 28 June 2004 and continue to reside at a remote locality; or
    2. on or after 28 June 2004, who, as a direct result of their employment at the AEC, relocated from another town or city to Kalgoorlie or Mount Isa.
  2. Subject to clause 446, the Electoral Commissioner may, in reference to the relevant policy,  determine the amounts an employee is entitled to receive for some or all of the following:
    1. a district allowance (with or without dependants), paid fortnightly with reference to the rates advised by the applicable Australian Taxation Office Determination;
    2. additional recreation leave credits;
    3. reunion fares;
    4. travel for emergency or compassionate reasons;
    5. travel for medical or dental treatment;
    6. fares for children attending school away from the remote locality;
    7. remote locality leave fares; and/or
    8. additional leave for travel.
  3. If the employee’s spouse/de facto partner is also entitled to district allowance or a similar allowance from their employer, the rate of the district allowance paid to the employee is ‘without dependants’.
  4. If, during the life of this agreement, AEC divisional offices are moved to other remote localities, employees at those localities will receive relevant remote locality conditions with reference to the rates advised by the applicable Australian Taxation Office Determination.