EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Statutory Rules 1989 No 147
Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees)
Regulations (Amendment)
(Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Industrial Relations)
Section 26 of the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Act 1976 (the LSL Act) provides that “The Governor-General may make regulations, not inconsistent with this Act, prescribing all matters which are required or permitted to be prescribed, or which are necessary or convenient to be prescribed, for carrying out or giving effect to this Act”.
Subsection 4(6) of the LSL Act provides that “A reference in this Act to a person who is employed by, remunerated by, in the service of, on loan to or appointed or engaged by the Commonwealth shall be read as including a reference to a person who is employed by, remunerated by, in the service of, on loan to or appointed or engaged by -
(a) a public authority of the Commonwealth;
(b) a body (not being a public authority of the Commonwealth) established by or under a law of the Commonwealth or of an internal Territory that is declared by the regulations to be a body to which this subsection applies; or
(c) a company that:
(i) is incorporated (whether before or after the commencement of this paragraph) under a law of the Commonwealth or a law in force in a State or Territory;
(ii) is a trading corporation, or a financial corporation, within the meaning of paragraph 51(20) of the Constitution; and
(iii) is declared by the regulations to be a body corporate to which this paragraph applies”.
Section 9 of the ANL (Conversion into Public Company) Act 1988 amends the enabling legislation of ANL by converting the Australian Shipping Commission (the Commission), which trades as ANL, into a public company registered under the Companies Act 1981 by the name ANL Limited. Section 9 of the ANL (Conversion into Public Company) Act 1988 commenced on 1 July 1989.
Section 12 of the Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation (Conversion into Public Company) Act 1989 amends the enabling legislation of the Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation (the
Corporation) (the Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation Act 1970) by deeming the Corporation to be a company registered under the Companies Act 1981 by the name of SMEC Limited. Section 12 of the Snowy Mountains Engineering (Conversion into Public Company) Act 1989 commenced on 1 July 1989.
The Australian Industry Development Corporation Amendment Act 1988 amends the Australian Industry Development Corporation Act 1970 (the Principal Act) reorganising the business of the Australian Industry Development Corporation (the Corporation) by providing for the transfer of business (other than nominated assets and liabilities) and some staff to AIDC Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Corporation registered under the Companies Act 1981. The Minister for Industry Technology and Commerce will fix the day on which the business of the Corporation is to be transferred to AIDC Limited under section 29D of the Principal Act. The Chief Executive of the Corporation will determine those staff who are to be transferred and the date of their transfer to AIDC Limited under section 29S of the Principal Act.
Employees of the Australian Shipping Commission, the Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation and the Australian Industry Development Corporation (the organisations), were previously covered by the provisions of the LSL Act by means of being “public authorities of the Commonwealth” for the purposes of paragraph 4(6)(a) of that Act.
On conversion into, or transfer to public companies, the organisations ceased to be “public authorities of the Commonwealth”. To continue the coverage of employees under the LSL Act it was necessary that regulations be made to declare the organisations to be bodies corporate under paragraph 4(6)(c) of the Act.
The necessary amendments to Regulation 3 of the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Regulations, to declare the organisations to be bodies corporate to which paragraph 4(6)(c) of the LSL Act applies, by replacing Schedule 1A to the Regulations with an updated Schedule 1A have now been made. The amendments come into effect on the day on which ANL Limited and SMEC Limited become public companies and staff of the Australian Industry Development Corporation are transferred to AIDC Limited.
Overview
The Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Regulations (Amendment) 1989, issued under the authority of the Minister for Industrial Relations, was enacted to ensure that employees of the Australian Shipping Commission, the Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation, and the Australian Industry Development Corporation continued to be covered by the provisions of the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Act 1976 (LSL Act) following their conversion into or transfer to public companies. As a result of these legislative changes, these organisations ceased to be classified as "public authorities of the Commonwealth," which had previously provided coverage under the LSL Act. The amendment to Regulation 3 of the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Regulations, which was necessary to declare these organisations as bodies corporate under paragraph 4(6)(c) of the LSL Act, was achieved by replacing Schedule 1A with an updated version. The purpose of this regulatory amendment was to maintain the continuity of long service leave entitlements for the employees of these organisations, ensuring that the policy objective of providing long service leave benefits to Commonwealth employees was not disrupted by the structural changes within these entities.
Scope and Application
The Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Regulations (Amendment) 1989 amends the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Regulations to ensure that employees of the Australian Shipping Commission, the Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation, and the Australian Industry Development Corporation continue to be covered by the provisions of the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Act 1976 (the LSL Act) following the conversion of these entities into public companies or the transfer of business to a subsidiary company. The amendments apply to these specific entities, which are now public companies registered under the Companies Act 1981, including ANL Limited, SMEC Limited, and AIDC Limited. The amendment to Regulation 3 of the Regulations, achieved by replacing Schedule 1A with an updated version, ensures that these entities are declared as bodies corporate under paragraph 4(6)(c) of the LSL Act, thereby maintaining the coverage for their employees. These changes come into effect on the respective dates when the Australian Shipping Commission and the Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation become public companies and the business of the Australian Industry Development Corporation is transferred to AIDC Limited. The regulations do not alter the fundamental scope of the LSL Act but ensure continued application to employees of these entities through the specified amendments.
Key Provisions
The Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Regulations (Amendment) Statutory Rules 1989 No 147 include significant amendments to the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Regulations, specifically aimed at updating the regulatory framework to accommodate the conversion of certain Commonwealth entities into public companies. The primary operative section of these regulations is Section 26 of the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Act 1976 (the LSL Act), which empowers the Governor-General to make regulations necessary for carrying out the Act. In this instance, the amendment to Regulation 3 involves the substitution of an updated Schedule 1A to the Regulations, which declares specific entities to be bodies corporate under paragraph 4(6)(c) of the LSL Act. This change ensures that employees of the Australian Shipping Commission, the Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation, and the Australian Industry Development Corporation continue to be covered by the LSL Act following their conversion into public companies.
The regulations impose specific obligations on the entities involved, namely ANL Limited, SMEC Limited, and AIDC Limited. These obligations include ensuring that their employees remain covered under the LSL Act by virtue of the updated Schedule 1A. This involves administrative tasks such as updating internal records, communicating with employees about their long service leave entitlements, and ensuring compliance with any new regulatory requirements that may arise from their status as public companies. The amendments also require these entities to cooperate with the relevant authorities in any audits or reviews related to long service leave compliance.
Failure to comply with the requirements of the amended regulations could result in legal and financial repercussions. While the specific penalties for non-compliance are not detailed in the explanatory statement, breaches of regulations under the LSL Act can generally lead to civil or criminal penalties. These may include fines, legal action, or other sanctions as prescribed by the relevant laws. It is important for the entities involved to adhere strictly to the updated regulations to avoid any potential consequences of non-compliance.