On 12 August 2017, the Victorian Government announced its intention to introduce the Long Service Leave Bill 2017 into Parliament that would replace the Victorian Long Service Leave Act 1992.

The announcement follows a review of the Victorian Long Service Leave Act 1992 to which Ai Group made a detailed submission.

The Victorian Government has released an information paper which outlines the key changes that will be incorporated within the new Bill. These include:

• There will be flexibility for employees to take long service leave in any number of periods with the agreement of the employer, including single days of leave;
• An employee will be able to take long service leave after seven years of service (currently pro rate long service leave is payable on termination of employment after seven years of service but leave can only be taken after 10 years of service);
• New averaging arrangements will apply when calculating entitlements for employees who have worked different ordinary hours during their employment with a company;
• Paid parental leave and up to 12 months of unpaid parental leave will count as service;
• Where employment ends and the employee is re-employed within 12 weeks, continuous service will not be broken;
• New continuity of service arrangements will apply to casual and seasonal workers to ensure that they are not disadvantaged when they take parental leave;
• New transfer of business / transfer of employment arrangements will apply, based on concepts in the federal Fair Work Act 2009;
• Penalties for breaches of the long service leave legislation will be increased; and
• Departmental staff will have new inspection and enforcement powers under the legislation.

If you would like assistance in providing long service leave, please contact Ai Group’s Workplace Advice Service on 1300 55 66 77.

Alternatively, if you would like assistance in managing long service leave across different states and territories, please contact your local employment, workplace and industrial lawyer in Sydney, Newcastle, Wollongong, Melbourne or Brisbane or email Ai Group Workplace Lawyers at info@aigroupworkplacelawyers.com.au.