FOI Part II Statements

The Portable Long Service Authority (the Authority) is an independent statutory body. We administer the Long Service Benefits Portability Act 2018 (Vic)(opens in a new window) (the Act) and the Long Service Benefits Portability Regulations 2020 (Vic)(opens in a new window) (Regulations). The Act provides a Scheme for portable long service benefits. The Scheme applies to covered workers in the following industries:

• Community services
• Contract cleaning
• Security

Covered workers accrue long service benefits based on how long they have worked in their industry.

Our functions are set out in the Act and Regulations.

We are responsible for:

• registering employers who employ workers in these sectors
• maintaining a register of workers and employers for the Scheme
• educating employers and workers about their responsibilities and entitlements under the Scheme
• receiving quarterly activity returns from employers and collecting the appropriate levy
• paying long service leave benefits to workers when they qualify for it
• compliance and enforcement activities

The Portable Long Service Authority is overseen by its Governing Board. The Governing Board were appointed by the Victorian Minister for Industrial Relations. For more information on our Governing Board and our structure, visit our online Annual Report.

Our teams are:

• Legal, Governance and Secretariat
• Finance
• Operations
• Facilities and Information Technology
• People and Culture
• Communications and Engagement

We create and store many documents. Most of our documents are electronic. Some of our documents are in hard copy.

These are examples of the types of documents we hold:

• policies, procedures and plans
• correspondence
• reports
• meeting papers, minutes and records
• financial records
• training and educational material
• personnel records
• operational records
• contracts
• registers
• audio-visual material

The Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Vic)(opens in a new window) (FOI Act) gives you the right to request access to documents held by the Authority.

The FOI Act widens community access to information held by the government and other covered bodies under Victorian law.

Before you make a request for access

• Check our website to see if the document you are looking for is already available. You might find what you are looking for in our Annual Report or resources.
• Call or email us to ask if we can provide the document to you. You can call on 1800 517 158(opens in a new window) or email enquires@plsa.vic.gov.au(opens in a new window).

Common documents people look for include:

• Our Annual Report
• The list of employers who are registered under the Scheme

Making a request for access

A Freedom of Information (‘FOI’) request is a special request for documents. The FOI Act sets out the rules we have to follow after receiving your request.

The Authority has a Freedom of Information Officer (‘FOI Officer’). The FOI Officer is responsible for responding to your FOI request.

How do I make a FOI request?

1. You can email us at foi@plsa.vic.gov.au(opens in a new window), using the subject line ‘FOI request - Attn: FOI Officer.’

2. You can post your request to us at the following address:

   Attn: Freedom of Information Officer
   Portable Long Service Authority
   PO Box 443
   Bendigo VIC 3552

3. You can apply online through the Office of the Victorian Information Commissioner’s website(opens in a new window).

What should I put in my FOI request?

Your request must:

• be made in writing (either paper or email)
• clearly describe the information or document that you are seeking access to.

There is a fee for making a FOI request. This fee changes on 1 July every year. Right now, the fee is $32.70. After we receive your request, we will contact you to arrange payment. If you are in financial difficulty, we may be able to waive the fee.

The FOI Officer will contact you if we need more information about your request.

The Office of the Victorian Information Commissioner has helpful information on their website about how to make a FOI request(opens in a new window).

Processing the request for access

We will provide you with a decision as soon as possible. Under the FOI Act, we must provide you with a decision within 30 days of receiving your request.

If your request is complicated or if we need help from a third party in finding your information, we may ask for your permission to extend this deadline.

Access charges may apply once documents have been processed and an access decision has been made. Charges may include costs of photocopying and search and retrieval of documents. Find more information on freedom of information requests(opens in a new window).

We publish reports and other documents. You can download these publications from our website. Please contact us if you need help.

We also publish a monthly email newsletter with relevant information about each industry, news about the Scheme, and other updates.

Subscribe to eNews

We publish material on our website to help employers comply with the Portable Long Service Benefits Scheme and the operation of the Act and Regulations.

Our website has material to help employers comply with the Scheme and the operation of the Act and Regulations.

We have a range of internal policies and procedures. These policies govern how we work and help us comply with our obligations.

We publish an Annual Report each year. Find our latest Annual Report.