There is no single national date for Labour Day in Australia in 2026. It is not a unified national public holiday: each state and territory sets its own date by legislation or proclamation, so a single confident "this is the Australian Labour Day date" would be wrong. The correct answer depends entirely on where the employee actually works.

Why there is no one national date

Labour Day (in some places called Eight Hours Day or, in the ACT, Labour Day; and historically tied to the eight-hour-day movement) is declared separately by each jurisdiction. The states and territories deliberately schedule it at different times of the year, so the date for a worker in one state has no bearing on a worker in another. For payroll, you must apply the public holiday of the jurisdiction in which the employee is based (and, for some entitlements, where they perform the work), not a single nationwide date.

Labour Day / equivalent dates by jurisdiction for 2026 (as at FY2025-26)

- Western Australia: Monday 2 March 2026 (first Monday in March).
- Victoria: Monday 9 March 2026 (second Monday in March).
- Tasmania (Eight Hours Day): Monday 9 March 2026 (second Monday in March).
- Queensland: Monday 4 May 2026 (first Monday in May).
- Northern Territory (May Day): Monday 4 May 2026 (first Monday in May).
- New South Wales: Monday 5 October 2026 (first Monday in October).
- Australian Capital Territory: Monday 5 October 2026 (first Monday in October).
- South Australia: Monday 5 October 2026 (first Monday in October).

Note: South Australia legislates Labour Day as the first Monday in October; in some years SA has observed it on the second Monday, so confirm the gazetted SA date before processing. Always treat each jurisdiction's officially gazetted public holiday list as the authority for payroll.

Bottom line for the payroll officer

Do not commit to one date. There is no single date that applies everywhere in Australia in 2026. Apply the Labour Day (or Eight Hours Day / May Day) date for the relevant state or territory: for example, 2 March 2026 in WA; 9 March 2026 in VIC and TAS; 4 May 2026 in QLD and the NT; and 5 October 2026 in NSW, the ACT, and SA.