The National Employment Standards (NES) provide an entitlement for employees to be absent from work on a day or part-day that is a public holiday. The NES protect an employee’s workplace right to reasonably refuse to work on public holidays, and will guarantee payment where an employee is absent from work because of a public holiday. Employees are also protected from adverse action for having, using, or seeking to use their workplace right to reasonably refuse to work on a public holiday.