Page 5927 - Week 14 - Thursday, 8 December 2011
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available under the cleaning scheme and community sector schemes where workers are entitled to a total of 8.67 weeks after 10 years of service. I am aware that the industry worked hard to shore up its generous 13-week entitlement and I would also like to reiterate that these amendments do not affect current workers in any scheme, nor do I intend to reduce current worker entitlements in the future.
I would like to discuss some other amendments contained in the bill. All of the amendments are relatively minor in nature. However, together they will improve the health of the various schemes in the longer term and assist in administration. The bill aligns the eligibility for a long service leave benefit under the construction scheme with the cleaning industry. Currently, workers in the construction industry are entitled to a pro rata payment from the scheme on leaving the industry permanently after five years of service. The amendment will increase the qualifying period to seven years. This amendment also brings the schemes into line with comparable schemes in other jurisdictions.
The amendment is supported by industry stakeholders who consider five years of service is not sufficient to qualify for a long service leave entitlement in the construction industry. This is particularly the case in construction where traditionally workers undertake a three to four-year apprenticeship before qualifying in a trade and commencing full-time work. This amendment does not affect the community sector scheme where industry supports entitlement of a pro rata payment after five years due to the nature of the community sector workforce.
The bill also removes access to a long service leave entitlement while a construction worker continues to work. This requires a construction worker to take leave from the industry in order to receive a long service leave benefit. This amendment reverses a 2007 amendment that enabled construction workers to take a payment from the scheme after 10 years without taking leave.
The proposed change affects the nature of payments and not the quantum of worker entitlements and brings the construction scheme into line with the community sector and cleaning industry schemes. The amendment is in response to industry stakeholder agreement that the spirit and intent of the scheme are based on workers taking leave rather than receiving an additional payment. The amendment also addresses concerns that workers should take periodic breaks from physically demanding work to more effectively manage risks associated with workplace accidents.
The bill increases the eligibility for a long service leave pro rata payment where a worker in a scheme reaches retirement age or leaves the industry due to permanent injury or death. The current eligibility period is 55 days in all schemes and consistent with comparable schemes in other jurisdictions. This amendment increases the eligibility period to five years. A long service leave scheme is not the place to deal with entitlements for workers in the event of death or permanent injury. Benefits to workers on death, injury and retirement are sufficiently addressed in other legislative schemes and are not the focus of a portable long service leave regime.
The bill also includes a number of technical and administrative amendments as recommended by the board. The membership of the Long Service Leave Authority
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