More on long service leave

Long service leave differs from state to state and territory. Ashley’s employer is transferring her interstate so she wants to know which long service provision will apply. The old state or the new?

According to employment lawyer Peta Tumpey of Hunt & Hunt, the provisions of the state where you are employed at the time you become eligible for long service leave apply. So if you moved from NSW to South Australia then after ten years continuous service the SA provisions would apply, not those in NSW. However, Ms Tumpey said that if an employee feels an interstate move would put them at a disadvantage they should approach their employer about the issue before the move.

Usually one of two solutions could then apply. The first option could be negotiating which provisions will apply. “This is usually appropriate when the period of interstate service is insignificant – say up to 12 months,” said Ms Tumpey.  “The second [option] is for the employer to split the period of employment into the amount of service in each state and make a separate calculation of the leave entitlements that have been accrued and provide the employee with the total. 

This is a much better option when dealing with jurisdictions that are more generous such as South Australia and the Northern Territory [13 weeks paid leave after 10 years continuous service].  This method as well as being fair often avoids bad employee relationships and unnecessary litigation.” Please note that all states introduced a portable long service scheme for construction workers. Construction work can last for months or just a few years at most and workers usually jump from employer to employer – it’s just the nature of the sector.

By Kate Southam, Editor of careerone.com.au

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