Overview

The Portable Long Service Benefits Authority is an independent statutory body established to administer the Long Service Benefits Portability Act 2018 (the Act). The Act, together with the Long Service Benefits Portability Regulations 2020 (the Regulations), provide a scheme for the portability of long service benefits to eligible workers in the community services, contract cleaning and security industries.

The Scheme enables eligible workers to accrue long service benefits based on the length of time employed in their respective industry, rather than the length of time employed by one employer. The Authority maintains registers of covered employers and workers and is responsible for the collection of levies and overseeing the payment of benefits.

Vision

Delivering a quality Portable Long Service Benefits Scheme to protect the benefits of those who are entitled to them.

Purpose

Administering an effective Portable Long Service Benefits Scheme through prudent, sustainable investment and supporting all stakeholders – including employers and workers alike – as well as educating and enforcing every stakeholder’s role and interest in the Scheme.

Values

The Authority has adopted the Victorian Public Sector values, which underpin the behaviours that the government and community rightly expect of it. Acting consistently with these values strengthens the Authority’s capacity to operate effectively and achieve our objectives.

These values are:

• Responsiveness – We are approachable and provide timely, useful and accurate information.
• Integrity – We have unbiased and honest interactions.
• Impartiality – We are firm and consistent in our application of the law.
• Accountability – We fulfil our objectives in a clear, transparent and responsible manner.
• Respect – We respect our stakeholders, each other and ourselves.
• Leadership – We seek to have a positive influence and to empower others.
• Human rights – We administer the law and deliver decisions, advice and policy that respect and support everyone’s human rights.

Chair and Chief Executive Officer / Registrar’s Report

On behalf of the Governing Board, we are pleased to present the Annual Report of the Portable Long Service Authority (the Authority) for the financial year ended 30 June 2021.

The Portable Long Service Leave Scheme (the Scheme) continues to grow and mature and this is evidenced by the total number of registered workers which has increased to 177,960 across the three covered industries being community services, contract cleaning and security. Total registered employers have also increased to 2,540. Both registration figures are well above the targets of the Authority that were originally determined by the Victorian Government and informed by a detailed independent actuarial study performed at the commencement of the Scheme.

Since the Scheme commenced operations on 1 July 2019, the Authority has made giant steps towards fulfilling its vision of delivering a quality portable long service leave scheme to some of Victoria’s most financially vulnerable workers. The strong foundations that have been laid during the 2020-2021 financial year continue to build on the success of the first year of the Authority’s operations despite the continued background challenges that COVID-19 has had on so many workplaces and more sadly on society in general.

Under the oversight of the Governing Board, the Authority’s leadership team has established the Portable Long Service Authority as an effective regulator and administrator of the Scheme. This has been underlined by continued strong financial growth and the responsible funds management of over $120 million in financial assets since the Scheme’s inception.

The dedication and commitment of our staff is also to be commended. The large number of workers and employers registering with the Authority in the past financial year has generated heavy workloads which have been managed by a dedicated workforce based mainly in regional Victoria. The challenges of providing exceptional customer service to employers and workers, as well as other stakeholders against the uncertainty of necessary lockdowns during the financial year, has been overcome by the resilience and willingness of the Authority’s staff to adapt to changing circumstances.

The Authority continues to be headquartered in Bendigo and this has been fruitful in creating employment and injecting income into the local economy, as supported by the fact that the majority of staff have been recruited from Greater Bendigo and surrounding areas. The Authority remains determined to build lasting relationships with community and business groups in regional Victoria.

Looking forward, our priority for the coming financial year is to ensure more eligible employers in the three covered industries are registered with the Authority. We will also be enforcing the legislation and regulations that establish the Authority to ensure that covered employers comply with their legal and financial obligations.

We look forward to the challenges in the new financial year and to building on the continued achievements made by the Authority in the current financial year.

Julius Roe
Chair, Governing Board

Joseph Yeung
Chief Executive Officer / Registrar

Role and functions

The Authority has several key functions pursuant to the Act:

1. Administering the Portable Long Service Benefits Scheme in the covered industries.
2. Making payments of benefits.
3. Keeping registers of covered employers and workers.
4. Resolving disputes as to the timing of taking a period of leave (applicable only to workers in the contract cleaning and security industries).
5. Consulting other industries that may be affected by decisions made under the Act in relation to covered industries.

Statement of expectations

The Authority is delivering on the Victorian Government’s Statement of Expectations for the period 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2022, which sets out the Authority’s contribution to the Government’s program to reduce red tape and promote greater efficiency and effectiveness in the administration and enforcement of regulation.

To achieve this, the Authority has identified a range of projects and activities. The key priorities are:

• Continuing to explore ways to ensure all processes are timely, efficient and effective.
• Employing risk-based approaches to regulatory operations.
• Providing easy to understand, effective and accessible compliance information.
• Being accountable and transparent in its operations.
• Ensuring that regulatory activities are clear and consistent.

The Authority will consult with relevant stakeholders as appropriate and will report progress against performance targets in our Corporate Plan and Annual Financial Reports.

The Authority will continue to strive to identify and implement further regulatory burden reduction initiatives where possible.

Meet Martin Boyle

At 203 centimetres tall, Bendigo resident Martin Boyle is certainly an imposing figure. We talk to Martin about his career as a security guard.

How did you get into the security industry?

Back in 2012, a couple of friends were employed as security guards and suggested I might enjoy the work. I found a casual contract position working at the Thales facility in Bendigo where they manufacture light armoured military vehicles. It was an interesting place to work, with shifts varying from three to seven days a week, any time of the day or night.

Were you only working the one security job?

Besides Thales, I was working on the front desk at State Trustees in Bendigo, meeting customers and assessing their needs. I also had a job as a security guard at a nightclub a couple of nights a week. In total, I had three jobs going. Two were with security contract companies while the third was directly through the nightclub manager.

Have there been other security positions since then?

Plenty. I work at major sporting events including the Melbourne Grand Prix, the Spring Racing Carnival, the Australian Tennis Open and music concerts at Rod Laver Arena. Since that work is spasmodic, I’ve also held casual contract positions in security with the Federal Circuit Court, Bendigo TAFE and more recently, La Trobe University in Bendigo.

How did you hear about the Portable Long Service Scheme?

Initially through a housemate who worked in payroll but I also had two contract employers who told me they had both signed me up to the Scheme. I remember receiving a letter from the Authority informing me that I was now registered with the Scheme. I never thought in my working life that I’d be eligible for portable long service leave. I’m now getting benefits paid into the Scheme from three employers.

Has the Scheme changed your life in anyway?

Not yet, but it will in about five years’ time. I log into the Authority’s worker portal every now and again to check on my hours accrued and think about the money I’ll get after seven years in the Scheme.

What do you plan to do with the money?

Have an overseas holiday for the first time ever.

Meet Gavin Pawsey

For most of Gavin Pawsey’s working life, the days and nights have been filled with rapturous applause. Few people can say their career revolved around the world of theatre production and furthermore be employed by some of Australia’s most significant cultural institutions.

There were signs of Gavin’s impending artistic future while growing up south west of Sydney, with the teenager taking a keen interest in amateur theatre.

Gavin felt he should complete a tertiary course which would give him a reliable, life-long career. An engineering course at Wollongong University beckoned. However, the magnetic draw of the arts saw Gavin become involved in Theatresports, a form of improvisational amateur theatre while in Wollongong. The prospect of a career in engineering faded away when Gavin applied and became one of the first ever theatre technical trainees at the Sydney Opera House in 1990.

The course involved working in most departments within the Sydney Opera House including staging and lighting, audio visual and sound. The hours were extremely long but exhilarating. The longest period he worked without a break was 25 days straight! Gavin worked at the Sydney Opera House for 21 years.

Gavin began work in the year 2000 at the Australian National Maritime Museum based at Darling Harbour on audio-visual installations. The positions at the Sydney Opera House and the Maritime Museum were flexible, giving him time to work between the two organisations.

In 2011, Gavin was appointed Head of Sound and Audio Visual at Opera Australia. The following six years was a hectic schedule of operatic productions performed around Australia.

By 2017, it was time for a dramatic change but not involving the drama of the stage. Gavin, his wife and son embarked on a journey from the suburbs of Sydney to country Victoria to be closer to his wife’s parents but with no idea where they would work or live.

“We lived with the ocean at the end of the street. The morning we left Sydney I watched a whale breaching the water. When we arrived in rural Victoria, a kangaroo hopped across the backyard where we were staying,” he said. Gavin wasn’t sure of the significance of the two incidents but felt nature was trying to tell him something.

Now settled in the Macedon Ranges, Gavin looked at his career options. A friend told Gavin his greatest gift was his ability to effectively communicate to all manner of people, often practiced within the inner sanctum of a theatre, opera house or museum.

With that in mind, Gavin applied for a position with a brand new organisation based in Bendigo called the Portable Long Service Authority, which managed a scheme aimed at providing workers in community services, security and contract cleaning with long service leave.

At his interview, Gavin told the panel he was attracted to the position because of its social justice element. “During my career,
I worked alongside contract security guards and cleaners who despite years of dedicated service never received long service leave,” said Gavin. “What I considered an important and rightful benefit,” he added.

Gavin became one of the first Customer Service and Education Officers with the Authority when it began operations in 2019. He now has a demanding role advising workers registered with the Authority of their rights under the Scheme and helping employers understand their role in providing for the financial future of their casual staff.

Take a bow Gavin Pawsey.

Business units

The Governance, Risk, Secretariat and Legal business unit is responsible for establishing good governance, delivering sound legal advice to the Authority as well as facilitating the efficient and effective running of the Governing Board and Audit and Risk Committee.

The Financial Services business unit underpins our operations and the Chief Financial Officer has specific responsibilities under the Financial Management Act 1994. Performance monitoring, responsible budgeting, and a robust investment strategy ensures that the entitlements of registered workers are managed prudently and helps to ensure the sustainability of the Scheme.

The Client Service and Operations business unit is the largest business unit within the Authority and delivers our core registry and enforcement functions through engaging with employers and workers to support them to fulfil their obligations and understand their rights.

The Facilities, Information and Technology business unit underpins our core operations and manages key vendors which support our network infrastructure and telephony systems. Having the best systems in place enables us to be efficient and effective in delivering on our functions.

The People and Culture business unit supports the growth and development of our people and culture. Our people are our greatest asset. Without our people, we have no capability to fulfil our statutory obligations under the Act.

The Communications and Engagement business unit leads communications, identification of and engagement with key stakeholders and internal and external education activities to ensure that employers understand and can meet their obligations and workers know their rights. It is vital that we communicate and engage with employers and eligible workers across the covered sectors.

Objectives

The Authority’s primary objectives

• Fulfil our legislative obligations by effectively administering the Long Service Benefits Portability Act 2018.
• Implement effective responsible budget and investment strategies which grow levy funds and deliver long-term sustainability.
• Be clear, consistent, transparent and responsive in our stakeholder communications to encourage registration and levy payments and ensure that eligible workers and employers are aware of their rights and obligations.
• Maintain a healthy and safe workplace with a culture that encourages engaged, resilient and solution-focused staff.
• Maintain an innovative, secure, resilient and integrated information technology environment that supports effective operations now and into the future.
• Protect the long-term interests of the Authority through effective regulation using governance, strategic risk management and clear policies and procedures.