Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Amendment Regulations 2003 (No. 1) 2003 No. 348
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Statutory Rules 2003 No. 348
Issued by the authority of the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations
Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Act 1976
Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Amendment Regulations 2003 (No. 1)
The Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Act 1976 (the Act) makes provision for long service leave in respect of Commonwealth employees and certain other persons. The Act provides for persons employed `in Government Service' to be granted long service leave or a payment in lieu where the period of service of the person is at least 10 years.
The Regulations amend the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Regulations 1957 (the Principal Regulations) to provide that the previous service of employees transferred from the Enterprise and Career Education Foundation Limited (ECEF) to the Department of Education, Science and Training (DEST) is recognised as prior service for the purposes of the Act.
Section 11 of the Act provides that the period of service of an employee is the period during which he or she has been employed continuously in Government Service. A person is taken to be employed in Government Service if the person is employed by the Commonwealth.
In addition, subsection 7(2) of the Act allows the regulations to provide that previous employment of an employee in the service of a body referred to in the regulations shall be taken to be employment in Government Service. Paragraph 7(3)(c) of the Act provides that the regulations may be expressed to have effect in respect only of employment on or after a particular date, before a particular date or during a particular period.
Section 26 of the Act provides that the Governor-General may make regulations not inconsistent with the Act, prescribing all matters which are required or permitted to be prescribed, or which are necessary or convenient to be subscribed, for carrying out or giving effect to the Act.
ECEF is an Australian public company limited by guarantee of which the Commonwealth is the sole shareholder. It was established in January 2001 to assist young people achieve the transition from school to further education, training and employment. The Government announced in the 2003-4 Budget that the functions performed by ECEF would be transferred to DEST. ECEF's eight staff were transferred to DEST on 1 October 2003 under section 72 of the Public Service Act 1999.
Details of the Regulations are set out in the Attachment.
The Regulations commence on gazettal.
ATTACHMENT
LONG SERVICE LEAVE (COMMONWEALTH EMPLOYEES) AMENDMENT REGULATIONS 2003 (No. 1)
Regulation 1
Regulation 1 sets out the name of the regulations.
Regulation 2
Regulation 2 provides for the commencement of the regulations on gazettal.
Regulation 3
Regulation 3 provides that the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Regulations 1957 (the Principal Regulations) are amended by Schedule 1.
Schedule 1 -- Amendments
Item 1
Regulation 8 of the Principal Regulations provides that the previous employment of an employee in the service of a person, authority, institution or body that is referred to in Schedule 2 shall be taken into account for the purposes of the Act as if it had been employment in Government Service.
Item 1 inserts a new item 78 in Schedule 2 to the Principal Regulations. New item 78 includes the Enterprise and Career Education Foundation Limited as a body with which previous service counts as Government Service for the purposes of the Act. This recognition of previous service applies only to those employees who were transferred to the Department of Education, Science and Training on 1 October 2003.
Overview
The Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Amendment Regulations 2003 (No. 1) were introduced to amend the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Regulations 1957, with the aim of recognising previous service of employees transferred from the Enterprise and Career Education Foundation Limited (ECEF) to the Department of Education, Science and Training (DEST). This was enacted under the authority of the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, as part of the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Act 1976. The primary policy objective of these regulations is to ensure that employees who were transferred from ECEF to DEST on 1 October 2003 have their prior service recognised for the purposes of long service leave entitlements. This amendment was necessary to provide continuity and fairness in the recognition of service for long service leave benefits, aligning with the overarching goal of the Act to provide for long service leave or payments in lieu for Commonwealth employees with a minimum of 10 years of service.
Scope and Application
The Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Amendment Regulations 2003 (No. 1) amends the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Regulations 1957 to recognise the previous service of employees who were transferred from the Enterprise and Career Education Foundation Limited (ECEF) to the Department of Education, Science and Training (DEST). This amendment ensures that the service provided by these employees with ECEF is considered as prior service for the purposes of the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Act 1976, thereby allowing them to be eligible for long service leave or a payment in lieu if their total period of service, including the recognised prior service, reaches at least 10 years. This amendment applies specifically to employees transferred to DEST on 1 October 2003, aligning their entitlements with those of other Commonwealth employees under the Act. The geographic and jurisdictional reach of these regulations is limited to Commonwealth employees and those specifically mentioned in the regulations, thus applying within the national framework of Australian employment law.
Key Provisions
The Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Amendment Regulations 2003 (No. 1) introduces key amendments to the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Regulations 1957, particularly concerning the recognition of prior service for long service leave purposes. Regulation 1 sets the name of these amendments, while Regulation 2 specifies that these regulations come into effect immediately upon gazettal. Regulation 3 modifies the Principal Regulations by incorporating Schedule 1, which amends the existing regulations to include a new entity, the Enterprise and Career Education Foundation Limited (ECEF), as a body whose previous employment will be recognised as Government Service under the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Act 1976 (section 7(2)). This amendment is specifically for employees transferred from ECEF to the Department of Education, Science and Training (DEST) on 1 October 2003.
These regulations impose specific obligations on the entities and individuals they govern. Under Section 11 of the Act, it is crucial to establish the continuous period of service for Commonwealth employees. The new amendment ensures that the previous employment of ECEF staff, who were transferred to DEST, is recognised as prior service under the Act. This means that their service with ECEF is counted towards their eligibility for long service leave or a payment in lieu when they reach the 10-year service milestone. This recognition ensures that these employees are not disadvantaged due to the transition of their employment from ECEF to DEST.
The Regulations impose no direct offences, penalties, or civil/criminal consequences for breach as they are primarily procedural and interpretative in nature. However, failure to recognise the service of ECEF employees as stipulated in the amended regulations could result in these employees being ineligible for long service leave benefits they would otherwise be entitled to. This could potentially lead to disputes and claims for retrospective entitlements if not properly addressed. The regulations, while not imposing penalties themselves, ensure compliance with the Act by clearly defining which previous services are recognised for long service leave purposes.