Long service leave for part-time employees in the Northern Territory
The Northern Territory's Act covers part-time employees through its general definition of an employee, and ties leave pay to the weekly hours worked in each year of service. A year with set hours uses the set number of weekly hours for that year, and where hours changed over the years, each year is paid on its own hours.
- By Book Keeping Pros
- Sources checked 15 Oct 2026
The rules in Northern Territory
| What it is | Value | When it applies | Where it is set |
|---|---|---|---|
| Part-time employees are covered by the Act | Yes | As published on 14 October 2015 | s 7(1): definition of employee |
| Weekly hours used for a year of service with set hours | The set number of weekly hours worked in that year | As published on 14 October 2015 | s 11(1), hours of work per week, para (a): set hours |
| How leave is worked out when weekly hours changed over the years | Each year of service is paid on the weekly hours worked in that year | As published on 14 October 2015 | s 11(3), definition of HWW |
| The employer must keep a record of the employee's weekly hours | Yes | As published on 14 October 2015 | s 14(1)(ba): leave records, hours of work per week |
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
- The NT Act has the employer keep a record of each employee's weekly hours. Since each year of service is paid on that year's hours, the record needs to run year by year from the start date, showing when hours changed.
- For a year with set hours, a dated note of the weekly hours agreed for that year can sit with the hours record, so the set hours for each year are easy to find.
- Weekly hours totalled for each year of service let the books show the hours each year is paid on. What a particular employee's leave comes to is a question for your accountant or the Northern Territory Government.
General information
Sources
- Long Service Leave Act 1981 (NT), reprint as in force at 14 October 2015
Office of the Parliamentary Counsel, Northern Territory. Reprint as in force at 14 October 2015, released 14 October 2015. Checked 15 October 2026.
© Northern Territory of Australia Licence: NT Legislation terms of use: copyright, Northern Territory of Australia.
- Long service leave
Northern Territory Government (NT.GOV.AU). Page modified 26 February 2025 (dcterms.modified metadata), released 26 February 2025. Checked 15 October 2026.
© Northern Territory of Australia Licence: NT.GOV.AU copyright notice: copyright, Northern Territory of Australia (fair dealing only unless a Creative Commons licence is stated).
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