Long service leave (LSL) is an entitlement in the National Employment Standards (NES), but the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) does not prescribe one national number of weeks after one national qualifying period.

For most employees—including many employees of national-system employers—the substantive entitlement comes from the applicable State or Territory long service leave legislation. Part 2-2, Division 9 of the Fair Work Act preserves or gives effect to those entitlements. An applicable enterprise agreement, preserved pre-modern federal award or transitional instrument, or an industry portable long service leave scheme may also govern or supplement the entitlement, subject to the NES minimum.

The calculation should therefore be done by:

1. Identifying the employee’s usual work location and the applicable State or Territory law. The employer’s national headquarters does not determine the entitlement.
2. Checking any applicable enterprise agreement, preserved award or portable-industry scheme.
3. Applying the relevant rules for continuous service, qualifying periods, recognised absences, transfers, part-time or casual service, and any breaks in service.
4. Applying that jurisdiction’s rules for the amount of leave, the rate of payment, taking the leave, and payment on termination. Pro-rata termination entitlements and the circumstances in which they arise differ between jurisdictions.

For example, the headline statutory rules differ:

- **Victoria:** entitlement generally arises after 7 years’ continuous employment, calculated at 1 week for every 60 weeks of employment. Ten years would therefore produce about 8⅔ weeks.
- **New South Wales:** generally 2 months’ leave after 10 years’ continuous service, commonly expressed as 8⅔ weeks. Pro-rata payment after 5 years is subject to specified termination circumstances.
- **South Australia:** generally 13 weeks after 10 years’ continuous service, with different rules for later service and pro-rata payment on termination.

Queensland, Western Australia, Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory have their own legislation and rules, which also differ in qualifying periods, accrual rates and termination provisions.

Accordingly, there is no uniform long service leave figure that applies in the same way throughout Australia. The employee’s location, applicable instrument or scheme, and individual service history must be identified before the entitlement can be calculated.