How industrial action impacts leave

We’re occasionally asked what happens with long service leave when an employee participates in industrial action. In brief, if an eligible employee is not attending work due to their participation in industrial action then that employee is considered to be on unpaid or unauthorised leave and would not accrue qualifying service. Under the long service leave legislation, employees on unpaid leave do not accrue qualifying service except in these cases: community service leave, operational stand-down or workers compensation. So what happens when a mine operator has too few workers due to industrial action and chooses to stand down those attending work or intending to work despite the industrial action? In accordance with section 39A(2)(b)(ii) of the Administration Act, employees not participating in the industrial action may accrue qualifying service if they have been stood down under Part 3-5 of the Fair Work Act 2009. An employer should report any change to Coal LSL through the monthly Levy Advice form to ensure accuracy of their employees’ service history.