Page 3537 - Week 10 - Tuesday, 25 August 2009
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Despite the international financial crisis and the general slowdown in economic activity throughout Australia, recent actuarial reports confirm that both schemes are in a sound financial position. In addition, the investigations underpinning these reports and recent yearly fiscal and performance audits by the Auditor-General have confirmed the integrity of workers’ service, record keeping and leave entitlement calculations, and employer registrations and levy collection mechanisms. In other words, the schemes are underpinned by sound economic and administrative principles. The reforms are well founded and will lay a firm foundation for the management and operation of long service schemes well into the future.
If I could recap, the construction industry portable long service leave scheme was established in recognition of the construction industry being project or development based and the workers really not staying with employers for any great length of time and, therefore, not being able to access or qualify for long service leave. Workers within the construction industry rightly believed that they required such a scheme that was portable and that was managed on behalf of the employees and the employers.
The cleaning industry portable long service leave scheme arose also out of the recognition that cleaners were amongst the lowest paid workers, worked part time or casually, often for not very long at one job and with multiple employers. They, too, thought that they needed the security and the benefits of long service leave. The two created authorities will administer and be accountable for the two long service schemes. They make long service payments to the employees, they maintain a register of employers, employees and contractors and they undertake other functions that are given to them under the law.
Robust and comprehensive accountability regimes are in place for the authorities which require them to submit separate statements of intent and annual reports and to meet other reporting requirements. I commend the bill to the Assembly.
MS HUNTER (Ginninderra—Parliamentary Convenor, ACT Greens) (10.51): The ACT Greens will be supporting the Long Service Leave (Portable Schemes) Bill 2009. I do note that the minister will be moving amendments a bit later today in response to the Standing Committee on Justice and Community Safety’s scrutiny report of 10 August 2009.
The Greens accept that the integration of the ACT Construction Industry Long Service Leave Authority and the ACT Cleaning Industry Long Service Leave Authority into a single ACT Portable Long Service Leave Authority will provide greater administrative savings and increased benefits for members. We recognise that this bill will result in the integration of the two existing authorities under one board with separate schedules detailing the attributes and entitlements relating to each specific scheme. It is envisioned that the new board will more easily oversee the operations of multiple schemes within the authority and will reduce the administrative burden on the authority.
This new legislation will also allow for the establishment and implementation of schemes for additional industries in the ACT, and I note that the government intends
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