Employers in the community services industry need to register their workers with the portable long service leave scheme. The scheme applies to paid staff employed on a full-time, part-time or casual basis who either carry out community service work or work for an employer whose main purpose is to provide a community service (such as those employed in administration or hired to perform labour work).
This registration ensures employees who have worked in the community services industry for 7 years are provided with long service entitlements, regardless of whether they have worked for multiple employers.
In most cases, workers will be registered automatically when they are included in a service return. However, if a worker is not registered within 3 months of beginning community service work, the employer must apply for registration of the person as a worker within 14 days after the end of the 3-month period.
Self-employed contractors can register themselves as workers with the scheme to accrue long service leave, but their participation is not mandatory.
