Queensland Numbered Acts

PUBLIC SECTOR ACT 2022 - SECT 115

115 Chief executive must review status after 2 years of continuous employment

(1) If a public sector employee mentioned in section 112 (1) has been continuously employed in the same public sector entity for at least 2 years, the employee’s chief executive must decide whether to—

(a) continue the employee’s employment according to the terms of the employee’s existing employment; or

(b) offer to convert the employee’s employment to a permanent basis.

(2) The employee’s chief executive must make the decision within the required period after—

(a) the end of 2 years after the employee has been continuously employed on a non-permanent basis in the public sector entity; and

(b) each 1-year period after the end of the period mentioned in paragraph (a) during which the employee is continuously employed on a non-permanent basis in the public sector entity.

(3) In making the decision—

(a) section 114 (3) and (4) applies to the employee’s chief executive; and

(b) the employee’s chief executive must have regard to the reasons for each decision previously made, or taken to have been made, under this section or section 114 in relation to the employee during the employee’s period of continuous employment.

(4) If the employee’s chief executive decides not to offer to convert the employee’s employment to a permanent basis, the chief executive must give the employee a notice stating—

(a) the reasons for the decision; and

(b) the total period for which the employee has been continuously employed on a temporary basis for a fixed term or on a casual basis in the public sector entity; and

(c) how many times the employee’s employment on a non-permanent basis has been extended; and

(d) each decision previously made, or taken to have been made, under this section or section 114 in relation to the employee during the employee’s period of continuous employment.

(5) Subsection (4) (c) does not apply in relation to employment on a casual basis.

(6) If the employee’s chief executive does not make the decision within the required period, the chief executive is taken to have decided not to offer to convert the employee’s employment to a permanent basis and to continue the employee’s employment according to the terms of the employee’s existing employment.

(7) For working out how long the employee has been continuously employed in the public sector entity—

(a) all periods of authorised leave are to be included; and

(b) the employee is to be regarded as continuously employed even if there are periods during which the employee is not employed in the entity, if the periods of non-employment in the entity total 12 weeks or less in the 2 years occurring immediately before the time when the duration of the person’s continuous employment is being worked out.

(8) The commissioner must make a directive about the making of a decision under this section.

(9) The directive must provide for—

(a) the matters a chief executive must consider in deciding the hours of work to be offered in converting a person’s employment under subsection (1) (b) ; and

(b) the circumstances in which a person may appeal against the decision about the hours of work offered in converting the person’s employment under subsection (1) (b) .

(10) This section does not limit or otherwise affect section 113 .

(11) In this section—

"required period" , for making a decision under subsection (1) , means—

(a) the period stated in an industrial instrument within which the decision must be made; or

(b) if paragraph (a) does not apply—28 days after the end of the period mentioned in subsection (2) (a) or (b) .