How Portable Long Service Leave works

What is Portable Long Service Leave?

Traditionally, long service leave is a period of paid leave granted to employees in recognition of a long period of service to an employer. Most employees in South Australia must remain with one employer for 10 years to be eligible to take 13 weeks of paid leave.

It was recognised that funding in the community services sector is often through government funding, grants and/or donations and employment opportunities are predominantly contract-based. Employees in the sector are frequently required to move between employers on a regular basis according to the allocation of funding from year to year. Realising the benefits that Portable Long Service Leave delivered to the construction industry through the Construction Industry Long Service Leave Act 1987, the SA Government worked together with employer and employee industry associations in the sector to develop their own portable model, allowing long service leave to be taken from employer to employer within the community services sector.

So how will it work exactly?

For employees performing work covered by the scheme, each employer reports their service every quarterly. Once a worker has recorded 120 months (equivalent to 10 years) of service, they become entitled to a 13-week paid break. After that, they'll continue to accrue another 1.3 weeks of leave after each additional 12 months of service is accrued.

How is service credited?

• A worker is credited with three months of service for each quarter where they've worked at least one shift in an eligible role.
• If they were on paid for leave from an eligible role during a quarter, they'll still receive three months of credited service for that quarter.
• A maximum of 12 months of service can be recorded per year.

The Quarterly reporting periods are:

• 1 January - 31 March
• 1 April - 30 June
• 1 July - 30 September
• 1 October - 31 December

How can workers check their entitlements?

When first registered, workers receive a unique Registration Number. They can use this to log into their Worker Portal, where they can:

• View their service history and leave balance
• Check that their employers have reported their details correctly
• See how close they are to taking that well-earned long service leave break!

Keeping details up to date in the Worker Portal helps ensure everything is accurate and that workers receive their entitles on time.