Who is covered by the WA Long Service Leave Act?
- Western Australian private sector employees (subject to the exclusions listed in the Who is not covered by the Long Service Leave Act section).
- Full time, part time, casual and seasonal employees.
- Apprentices and trainees.
- Full time, part time or casual employees in the state public sector who are not entitled to long service leave in their award or agreement that is at least equivalent to long service leave in the Long Service Leave Act (see the State public sector employees section).
Who is not covered by the WA Long Service Leave Act?
An employee who, under:
- an award;
- an industrial agreement;
- an agreement between the person and their employer; or
- a State, Territory or Commonwealth law,
is entitled to, or eligible to become entitled to, long service leave that is at least equivalent to the long service leave entitlement under the Long Service Leave Act.
- Employees of WA local government authorities – these employees are covered by the Local Government (Long Service Leave) Regulations.
- Many employees working on site in the construction industry who are covered by the Construction Industry Portable Paid Long Service Leave Act 1985 (WA).
- National system employees who:
- have long service entitlements in a federal pre-modern award that would have covered the employer and its employees before 1 January 2010.
- were previously covered by specific federal registered agreements made before 1 January 2010, and who had fully accrued a long service leave entitlement under such an agreement before 7 December 2023.
- Workers who are not employees, such as independent contractors.
Important information for national system employees
For national system employees, the long service leave page on the Fair Work Ombudsman website provides information on the process for checking long service leave entitlements. You can also contact the Fair Work Ombudsman on 13 13 94.
If the Fair Work Ombudsman advises that the WA Long Service Leave Act applies to the employee, rather than any pre-modern award or federal agreement, then the information on this website about the WA Long Service Leave Act will apply.
If a national system employee is covered by the state Long Service Leave Act, then any long service leave provisions in an enterprise agreement made on or after 1 January 2010 will be subject to the state Long Service Leave Act. This means that the WA Long Service Leave Act will prevail over a long service leave provision in an enterprise agreement where that provision is less beneficial than the state Long Service Leave Act.
State public sector employees
All public sector employees, including casual employees, are entitled to long service leave if they have the requisite continuous employment.
A public sector employee’s entitlement may derive from the Long Service Leave Act, the Long Service Leave Conditions State Government Wages Employees General Order, or the relevant award or industrial agreement that covers the employee.
The Long Service Leave Act does not apply to public sector employees if they are entitled to long service leave under their award or industrial agreement that is at least equivalent to the entitlement to long service leave under the Long Service Leave Act.
Casual public sector employees who are not entitled to paid long service leave under their award or industrial agreement or whose entitlement is not at least equivalent to the entitlement to long service leave under the Long Service Leave Act are entitled to long service leave under the Long Service Leave Act. This is regardless of the casual loading paid to such employees.
While the Long Service Leave Conditions State Government Wages Employees General Order does not apply to casual public sector wages employees, an industrial instrument that incorporates the General Order may extend long service leave to them.
Public sector employees should contact the Human Resources area of their employing agency with queries regarding their long service leave entitlements.
Construction industry employees
Many employees working on site in the construction industry are covered by a portable long service leave scheme established under the Construction Industry Portable Paid Long Service Leave Act 1985 (CIPPLSL Act). MyLeave is the organisation that administers this scheme.
Generally, if an employee has an entitlement to long service leave under the CIPPLSL Act, then the Long Service Leave Act will not apply to that employee.
However, if an employee is not entitled to, or eligible to become entitled to, long service leave under the CIPPLSL Act that is at least equivalent to the long service leave entitlement under the Long Service Leave Act, then they may be covered by the Long Service Leave Act.
Long service leave entitlements under the CIPPLSL Act and the Long Service Leave Act are calculated in different ways, with different rules.
At the point in time at which an employee wanted to take (or be paid for) long service leave, there would need to be an assessment of whether or not the employee’s entitlement under the CIPPLSL Act is at least equivalent to the entitlement they would receive under the Long Service Leave Act.
Construction industry employers and employees should contact MyLeave with queries regarding employee entitlements and employer obligations under the CIPPLSL Act.
Local government employees
The long service leave entitlements for most local government employees in WA come from the Local Government (Long Service Leave) Regulations, rather than the Long Service Leave Act.
Provisions in a state industrial agreement that covers local government employees may also contain more favourable long service leave provisions that supplement the Local Government (Long Service Leave) Regulations.
Local government employees should contact the Human Resources area of their local government employer with queries regarding their long service leave entitlements.
Private Sector Labour Relations may be able to assist local government employees with underpayment of a long service leave entitlement under the Local Government (Long Service Leave) Regulations 2024. The Steps to making an underpayment complaint outlines the process to follow to lodge a complaint with Private Sector Labour Relations.
Independent contractors
The Long Service Leave Act does not apply if a worker is an independent contractor.
There is an objective test set out in the Industrial Relations Act 1979 for determining whether a worker is an employee or an independent contractor. This test also applies when determining whether a worker is an employee for the purposes of the Long Service Leave Act. Visit Employee or independent contractor for more information.
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