A draft Bill to extend portable long service leave to the community services sector in South Australia has been released, delivering on a major Government election commitment.
Following initial stakeholder engagement, a consultation draft of the Portable Long Service Leave Bill 2024 and a discussion paper outlining how the new scheme will operate has been released, inviting feedback on the proposed reforms.
These reforms are modelled on the successful construction industry portable long service leave scheme, which has provided portable long service leave to workers in the building and construction sector since the 1970’s.
A worker is usually entitled to 13 weeks of long service leave after they have completed 10 years of continuous service with the same employer.
However in recent decades it has become more common for workers to move between different employers or be employed on a casual basis. This means those workers miss out on the opportunity to access long service leave and take a meaningful break during their working lives.
This is particularly important in community services such as homelessness, disability support, housing, and domestic violence. Short-term employment arrangements in the sector are common, and the work can be physically and emotionally challenging. Workers in the sector are overwhelmingly women.
Portable long service leave means a worker’s long service leave entitlement is based on their period of service in a particular industry, rather than their period of service with one employer. This means a worker’s long service leave entitlements can follow them between different employers in the same industry.
Portable leave has already been introduced for community services in Queensland, Victoria, and the Australian Capital Territory. Portable leave is also available in the construction industry in every State and Territory.
The introduction of portable leave in the community sector will also have benefits for employers by creating an incentive for workers to retain their skills within the sector, reducing staff turnover, improving worker satisfaction, and minimising the cost to business of recruiting and training replacement staff.
The Bill provides a framework for the potential expansion of portable long service leave to further sectors in the future, which would require further legislative change.
Read the discussion paper here.
View the consultation Bill here.
As put by Kyam Maher
In many sectors of our economy, the days of working for one employer for your entire career are gone. Our industrial laws need to recognise that and keep pace with changing employment practices.
Workers in industries like the community services sector often miss out on the chance to access long service leave and take a meaningful break during their working lives.
Community services workers provide an incredible service to some of the most vulnerable South Australians, and it is essential that their hard work is recognised and supported.
Portable long service leave gives community services workers a real incentive to stay in the sector, boost their skills, extend their careers, all the while providing better rewards for their work.
As put by Australian Services Union SA Branch Secretary Abbie Spencer
This is a great day for ASU members who have campaigned for over 7 years for this reform.
Enabling Long Service Leave to build up and follow social and community workers through their careers will give them the break they deserve, and help create a more attractive, sustainable sector.
Currently, due to short term funding, workers are rarely at the same employer for long enough to accrue Long Service Leave.
These workers support our communities most vulnerable, and they deserve a real break.
This is a win-win for social and community workers and employers.
As put by Executive Director of Clubhouse SA Inc. Kim Smith
This is a reform that benefits everybody.
It will give the hardworking employees in this sector more flexibility and choice.
Social and community sector workers will now have confidence that when they transfer into a new job, their long service leave goes with them.
It will also give workers more flexibility to take their leave because they know they are accruing long service leave that they can one day actually use.
