From 1 October 2025, eligible employees working in the community services sector will have access to portable long service leave (PLSL) by virtue of the commencement of the Portable Long Service Leave Act 2024 (SA) (the PLSL Act). This means that eligible employees will be able to accrue, carry and take long service leave, despite changing employers within the community services sector.
The introduction of a PLSL scheme in the community services sector arose from commitments made by the Malinauskas Government during of the 2022 State Election, as a means of supporting and retaining workers in a sector that provides services to some of the most vulnerable people in South Australia. It is closely modelled on the scheme that presently applies to the South Australin construction sector.
Does the new PLSL scheme apply to my business?
The scheme applies to those employees who perform community services work, or who support the provision of community services work, and where such work is contemplated by a qualifying award. At this stage, the qualifying awards are the Federal Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award 2020 and the Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement Award 2016.
The PLSL Act lists up to 30 types of community services which it envisages to capture, including (but not limited to) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community services, alcohol and other drugs services, counselling services, disability support services, employment services, family day care services, mental health services, social housing services and women’s services. However, the scheme does not apply to public sector agencies, councils or other employers prescribed by the regulations.
Therefore, if your business engages employees to provide services, or support the provision of services, in a community service covered by the qualifying awards, then your employees will be brought with the scheme. This means that your business will be required to comply with the quarterly levy and reporting requirements of the scheme.
How much is the levy?
A levy is payable on a quarterly basis in respect of all eligible employees. The levy is a percentage payable determined by reference to the declared percentage of the total remuneration paid to each of the employer’s eligible workers.
The PLSL Act limits the employer levy to 3%. We understand that the Industry Board, which sets and adjusts the levy on an annual basis, has set the initial levy rate at 2.2%.
What does this mean for my business?
At present, employers make internal provision for long service leave for their employees. If your business is impacted by the PLSL scheme, once it comes into effect, your business won’t be required to make provision for long service leave in the usual way; rather, your business will be required to pay the quarterly levy in respect of your eligible employees.
From 1 October 2025, affected employers will have 28 days to complete an online registration form to register their business. Affected employers will then have until 31 December 2025 to register their eligible workers via an online portal.
Thereafter, and on an ongoing basis, affected employers will be required to complete and lodge online quarterly returns, and pay the required levy in respect of their eligible employees. The first quarterly return, for the period 1 October 2025 to 31 December 2025, is due by 21 January 2025.
How much LSL is an employee entitled to?
The amount of long service leave, and the points at which that leave can be taken, remains unchanged for those employees to whom the Long Service Leave Act 1987 (SA) applies. That is, employees will still be entitled to access 13 weeks of long service leave after 10 years of service, and an additional 1.3 weeks for each subsequent year of service.
What about long service leave entitlements that accrued before 1 October 2025?
Eligible employees will not lose any long service leave accrual that they accrued with the employer with whom they were employed immediately before the commencement of the PLSL scheme. Such accruals (and provision for payment) must be maintained by their employer. However, if an eligible employee ceases working for that employer before their long service leave entitlement crystallizes, they will not be entitled to a payment.
However, if the eligible employee continues to work for the same employer after 1 October 2025 and they become eligible for long service leave, we understand that the Industry Board will invoice the employer for the portion of leave that accrued prior to 1 October 2025.
What should employers be doing now?
While the commencement of the scheme is a while away, there are things that impacted employers can do now to make the transition easier, including:
- Undertaking an audit of its workforce to identify which roles will be captured by the PLSL scheme, and seeking help in relation to those roles that are less clear
- Checking employment documentation to fully understand the source of long service leave entitlements
- Ensuring that all long service leave records are up-to-date, and financial mechanisms are in place to quarantine funds for future payment
- Diarising quarterly levy and reporting deadlines – 21 January, 21 April, 21 July, 21 October
As with all new legislation, the devil is in the detail, so we encourage all impacted employers to familiarise themselves with the new scheme, and seek guidance ahead of October.
Authors: Amanda Green and Cecilia White
July 2025