Long service leave for part-time employees in the Australian Capital Territory
The ACT's Long Service Leave Act covers part-time employees and has employers record whether each employee is full-time, part-time or casual. A part-time employee's leave pay, and the payment when employment ends, come from average weekly hours over the months in the table, while someone who left full-time work within the time before entitlement that the table states has their pay averaged over a longer period of years.
- By Book Keeping Pros
- Sources checked 15 Oct 2026
The rules in Australian Capital Territory
| What it is | Value | When it applies | Where it is set |
|---|---|---|---|
| Part-time employees are covered by the Act | Yes | As published on 19 November 2025 | Dictionary, definition of employee, para (a)(ii) |
| Months of average weekly hours used to work out a part-time employee's leave pay | 12 months | As published on 19 November 2025 | s 7(2): pay for part-time and casual employees |
| Years of pay averaged for someone who left full-time work in the 2 years before entitlement | 5 years | As published on 19 November 2025 | s 7(3): change from full-time employment |
| Months of average weekly hours used for the payment when employment ends | 12 months | As published on 19 November 2025 | s 11D(b): payment when employment ends |
| Employers must record whether each employee is full-time, part-time or casual | Yes | As published on 19 November 2025 | s 12(1)(b): employment type |
Each rule is read from the source and provision shown; the sources are listed below. Checked 15 Oct 2026.
What it means for your books
- An employment type kept on each employee's record, with the date of each change, shows when someone moved from full-time to part-time work, which the longer averaging rule turns on.
- Recording the hours a part-time employee actually works each week, rather than the agreed pattern alone, gives the average for leave and for the final payment something to rest on, provided the record reaches back across the months in the table.
- For someone who left full-time work within that time before entitlement, weekly pay records reaching back across the longer period in the table are what that rule averages. What a particular employee's leave comes to is for your accountant or WorkSafe ACT.
General information
Sources
- Long Service Leave Act 1976 (ACT), Republication No 29
ACT Parliamentary Counsel's Office. Republication No 29, effective 19 November 2025, released 19 November 2025. Checked 15 October 2026.
© ACT Government, ACT Legislation Register Licence: ACT Legislation Register copyright policy: copyright, ACT Government.
- Long service leave calculation guidelines
WorkSafe ACT. Undated guideline, listed on a page last modified 11 December 2020, released 11 December 2020. Checked 15 October 2026.
© Australian Capital Territory Licence: WorkSafe ACT copyright notice: copyright, Australian Capital Territory (unaltered reproduction for personal, educational or non-commercial use).
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