Long Service Leave Act 2018

For the purposes of this Act, money owed for long service leave by an employer to an employee (or to an employee's personal representative) is taken to be arrears of pay.

An employee to whom money is owed by an employer for long service leave under this Act or any other Act, or under an employment agreement or order made under this Act or any other Act, may commence a proceeding in the Industrial Division of the Magistrates' Court to recover the money owing.

An organisation may, if requested to do so by an employee who is, or is eligible to become, a member of the organisation, commence a proceeding in the Industrial Division of the Magistrates' Court to recover money owed to the employee for long service leave.

A proceeding under this section must be commenced within 6 years after the employee's entitlement to the money arises.

Before a proceeding may be commenced under this section, the employee or organisation, as the case may be, must give the employer a written demand for the money owed.

The Industrial Division of the Magistrates' Court may order an employer to pay interest in accordance with subsection (7) in addition to any other amount to which the employee is entitled if it is satisfied that the employer—

had reasonable notice of the employee's claim; and

had no reasonable grounds on which to dispute the claim; and

in the circumstances should have paid the claim without the need for a proceeding being commenced to establish the validity of the claim.

The interest must not be greater than the rate fixed under section 2 of the Penalty Interest Rates Act 1983 that applies at the time the order is made.

If a claim is made under this section by an employee's personal representative, subsections (6) and (7) apply despite anything to the contrary in section 29 of the Administration and Probate Act 1958.

In this section—