- Local government employees to have clearer long service leave entitlements
- New regulations strengthen the existing portability scheme
- Improved measures for part-time and casual employees
The Cook Government is introducing long service leave regulations to give clarity and certainty of the entitlements for around 23,000 Western Australian local government workers.
The new regulations improve the operation of the local government long service leave portability scheme, which is an integral part of local government employment conditions. This means that when staff change employment from one local government to another, their previous service continues to count towards their long service leave entitlements.
The new regulations, which come into effect on 1 September 2024, introduce a raft of improvements including:
- a longer permitted period of break between local government sector employers that maintains the employee’s continuity of service;
- allowing for parental leave pay from the Australian Government to count towards long service leave accrual;
- allowing advanced long service leave and the cashing out of long service leave; and
- clear protections for the entitlements in the event of unfair or unlawful dismissal.
These changes will also bring specific benefits for employees who have worked casually or part-time or who have moved between employers.
More information about the changes is available on the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries website at:https://www.dlgsc.wa.gov.au/long-service
As stated by Local Government Minister Hannah Beazley:
“Replacing these outdated regulations is just one part of the Cook Government’s reform agenda, which delivers the biggest improvements to WA’s local government system in 25 years.
“These changes bring clarity to employees’ entitlements in different situations, and we expect it will be easier for local government employers to calculate and administer long service leave.
“Ensuring part-time or casual workers have fair access to long service leave is especially important for women and younger people in our local government workforce.
“Tens of thousands of Western Australians serve our community by working in local government – their dedication needs to be recognised and fairly rewarded through long service leave.
“I would like to thank sector unions, the WA Local Government Association and Local Government Professionals WA for their input developing these reforms.”
