Spotless entities plead guilty to underpaying long service leave

Spotless Facility Services pleaded guilty to failing to pay 3 casual employees a total of $2,276 in outstanding long service leave entitlements on the day their employment ended.

Spotless Services Australia Limited pleaded guilty to failing to pay a casual employee their $2,201 long service leave entitlement when their employment ended.

In Victoria, an employee must receive payment of any untaken long service leave on the day their employment ends.

The offences took place between October 2020 and May 2023.

In sentencing, Magistrate Gilligan noted that the companies had repaid affected staff with interest, had self-reported the underpayment to the regulator and cooperated with its investigation.

His Honour, without conviction, placed Spotless Facility Services and Spotless Services Australia Limited on an adjourned undertaking to be of good behaviour for 6 months, and ordered them to pay a total of $12,000, comprising $4,000 in charitable donations to the Salvation Army ($3,000 for Spotless Facility Services and $1,000 for Spotless Services Australia Limited), and $8,000 in costs, payable by Spotless Facility Services.

Quotes attributable to Robert Hortle, Commissioner of Wage Inspectorate Victoria

“Staff must be paid any long service leave entitlement on the day their employment ends. The money can be a crucial lifeline that helps people meet living costs while they look for a new job.”

“Spotless has the resources to get their payroll obligations right, and to get them right the first time.”

“This case also highlights a poorly understood element of Victoria’s long service leave laws – casual employees with 7 years of service are entitled to long service leave. In fact, even seasonal staff can be entitled to long service leave if they have worked for the company long enough.”

Background

The Long Service Leave Act 2018 is a Victorian law that provides long service leave for employees who have worked continuously with one employer for at least 7 years. It applies to work that is full time, part time, casual, seasonal and fixed term.

After at least 7 years’ continuous employment with one employer, an employee is entitled to take their long service leave and be paid any unused long service leave entitlement on their final day of employment.

Most Victorian employees will be covered by the Act, unless they have a long service leave entitlement from another source, such as a registered agreement, award or another law.

A prosecution is the Wage Inspectorate’s most serious compliance tool and decisions to take legal action are made in line with its Compliance and Enforcement Policy.

Further information can be found at wageinspectorate.vic.gov.au.