Long service leave forms part of the National Employment Standards (NES). Our website has more information on Long service leave including contact details for state long service leave bodies, and a Long service leave fact sheet.

Enterprise agreements made from 1 January 2010 can include long service leave terms, including terms about portable long service leave and cashing out long service leave. There may also be long service leave entitlements in a pre-modern award. This is known as award-derived long service leave. If there are award derived long service leave terms, state and territory long service leave laws won't apply.

Award-derived long service leave terms

If the enterprise agreement has a long service leave term that’s different to the award-derived long service leave term, the term that is better for the employee generally applies.

This is because an enterprise agreement can supplement but not exclude the award-derived LSL entitlement.

No award-derived long service leave terms

Each state and territory has different rules that determine what applies when a long service leave term in an enterprise agreement is different to the state or territory long service leave laws.

Employers and employees may wish to seek independent advice about the rules that apply in their state or territory.

Cashing out long service leave

Long service leave can be cashed out if both of the following are met:

• the enterprise agreement has terms that allow it
• the relevant state or territory law allows it.

Disputes about long service leave in agreements

The dispute resolution process in an enterprise agreement can be used if there’s a dispute about long service leave, including portable leave and cashing out leave.

See the Fair Work Commission website for more information about dispute resolution under enterprise agreements.