Work out leave built up each pay period
Long Service Leave Act 1987 (SA)How leave builds up in South Australia
Under the Long Service Leave Act 1987 (SA), an employee gets 13.00 weeks of long service leave after 10 years of continuous service. That works out to 1.3000 weeks for each year, or 49.40 hours a year for someone working 38 hours a week.
The leave is not owed until the employee reaches 10 years (or 7 years, pro rata, for some reasons when the job ends). Until then, the balance shown on a payslip is a record, not an amount that can be taken.
Worked example: full-time in South Australia
An employee works 38 ordinary hours a week, earns $1,500 a week and is paid fortnightly. This is what the calculator above shows for South Australia:
- RateSouth Australia: 13.00 weeks after 10 years, which works out to 1.3000 weeks for each year of service (Long Service Leave Act 1987 (SA)).
- Per fortnight1.3000 weeks ÷ 52 × 2 = 0.05000 weeks of leave a fortnight.
- In hours0.05000 × 38 hours a week = 1.9000 hours a fortnight. That is 1.500 minutes for every hour worked.
- Value0.05000 weeks × $1,500.00 a week = $75.00 a fortnight, or $1,950.00 a year.
| Period | Leave built up | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Each fortnight | 1.90 hours | $75.00 |
| Each year | 49.40 hours | $1,950.00 |
When leave stops building up in South Australia
Accrual follows service. Some absences pause it without breaking your service; others count in full.
| Absence | What happens | Section |
|---|---|---|
| Unpaid leave | In SA, unpaid leave does not break your service but is not counted, so you need to work extra weeks to reach each milestone. | s 6(1)(f), s 6(2) |
| Unpaid parental leave | In SA, unpaid or government-funded parental leave does not break your service but is not counted. | s 6(1)(f), s 6(2) |
| Illness or injury | In SA, time off because of illness or injury counts as service. | s 6(1)(d) |
| Stand-down | In SA, a stand-down for slackness in trade does not break your service if you are later re-employed, but it is not counted. | s 6(1)(g), s 6(2) |
See the South Australia long service leave calculator for the full entitlement on leaving.
Common questions
How many hours of long service leave do you get per hour worked?
In the states that give 8.67 weeks after 10 years, leave builds up at about 0.8667 weeks for each year, which is 0.01667 hours for every hour worked (about 1 minute). In SA and the NT, which give 13 weeks after 10 years, it is 1.3 weeks a year, or 0.025 hours per hour worked.
Is long service leave owed from the first year?
No. In every state the leave is only owed once you reach the qualifying period (7 or 10 years, or earlier pro rata for some reasons). Payroll systems still track it from the start so the balance and the employer provision are ready.
Official sources
Rules last reviewed 3 November 2026. Every figure comes from the Acts, the regulators, the ATO and the AASB; see sources and method.