LeavePlus (CoINVEST) & Incolink: What Trades Businesses Need to Know [UPDATE April 2025]

Please note: This information article is written by a business coach exclusively for business owners to understand their obligations.

If you are a worker/tradie, please contact LeavePlus (formerly CoINVEST) or IncoLink directly:

Click for here for LeavePlus (CoINVEST) or call them on 1300 264 683

Click here for IncoLink or call them on (03) 9639 3000

 

 

What owners of trades businesses need to know about IncoLink and LeavePlus (formerly CoINVEST)

Staying on top of employee obligations is a major concern for many of the business owners I mentor in my role as a tradie business coach.

There are, of course, the obvious things to cover off like tax and superannuation. But certain industries have other specific compliance considerations to manage.

Businesses working within the Victorian building and construction industry have additional and sometimes complex obligations, such as:

• contributing to the portable long service leave scheme
• meeting requirements of enterprise bargaining agreements – eg redundancy pay, portable sick leave, insurances etc
• providing a safe and healthy workplace in an industry that must deal with an increased risk of trauma, injury and mental health concerns.

Organisations such as LeavePlus (formerly CoINVEST) and Incolink have been set up to make it simpler for employers within the building and construction industry to meet these additional employer obligations.

Since they’re so important to the day-to-day running of the trade businesses I support through business coaching for tradies, I thought it was worth exploring what they do and how their services work.

 

What is LeavePlus?

LeavePlus used to be known as CoINVEST. It’s the trustee company responsible for administering the Portable Long Service Leave Scheme for those working in the building and construction industry in Victoria.

Traditionally, employees had to maintain seven years continuous service with a single employer (with no more than three months break) to be awarded a long service leave entitlement.

The LeavePlus scheme was created in acknowledgement of the fact that this simply isn’t achievable for most working within the building and construction industry; employees are often engaged on a project basis and quite frequently move between companies. In fact, LeavePlus estimates that some 97% of participants in the scheme have worked with a minimum of two companies within their seven-year eligibility period.

The key word here is ‘portable’

The main benefit of the LeavePlus scheme is that it allows employees to carry their long service entitlement with them from job to job.

There is also some flexibility around the ‘continuous’ part; even employees who take breaks from working within the industry can still be eligible if they take up a covered position within four years (ie 3 years and 51 weeks). Additionally, time served at TAFE college or as an apprentice are counted as part of the continuous service period, as are all RDOs, annual leave, sick leave and public holidays.

This all goes a long way towards closing the long service leave entitlement gap for building and construction workers – something we frequently address in trade business coaching sessions.

 

What entitlement do employees get under the portable long service scheme?

Long service leave is calculated slightly differently depending on when an employee took up a role within the building and construction industry. In tradie business coaching sessions, we frequently advise businesses on these calculations to ensure compliance.

• Employees who started working in the industry before 2002 – long service leave is calculated as 13 weeks for every 15 years served (0.866 weeks of leave for every year of work).
• Employees who started working in the industry after 2002 – long service leave is calculated as 13 weeks for every 10 years served (1.3 weeks of leave for every year served).

Both can be accessed pro rata after seven years of service. After this period, most employees would be eligible for 9.1 weeks of long service leave at their full rate of pay, something we frequently help businesses navigate in business coaching for tradies.

 

Which trade sectors are covered by the scheme?

The LeavePlus scheme covers building, construction, electrical and metal workers. That said, they take a very broad definition of these categories, including sectors such as:

• Floor Covering Services
• Industrial Machinery or Equipment Services
• Landscape Gardening
• Non-Destructive Testing Services
• Parquetry Floor Laying
• Shopfitting
• Watering System Services

View the full list of all the trades covered by the scheme on the LeavePlus website.

For businesses engaging in trade business coaching, understanding which sectors are covered under the scheme is critical to ensuring compliance and planning for workforce benefits

How does it work?

All employers, workers, working subcontractors, working directors, and apprentices are legally required to register with LeavePlus. In tradie business coaching discussions, we highlight the employer responsibilities to ensure businesses remain compliant. Employers must:

• submit a Workers Day and Wages Form every three months (you’ll get an email to remind you to do this each quarter).
• Pay the invoice for their quarterly contribution to the scheme. This additional on-cost is worked out at a rate of 2.7% of the total wages paid to their employees.

LeavePlus then acts as a single point of reference, tracking how many days an eligible employee has worked within a seven-year period (across all employers). Once an employee is eligible to access their long service leave entitlement, they can request a form and make a claim. LeavePlus is then responsible for paying it out to them.

 

How do I register with LeavePlus?

• Employers can register by submitting their details to LeavePlus via an online form
• Workers can register using a separate online form available on the LeavePlus website.
• Working Subcontractors must email their details to LeavePlus

NB: You may wish to find out if you are a working subcontractor by LeavePlus’ definition before registering. You should also note that if you also employ other construction workers, you will need to register as both an employer and a working subcontractor.

For businesses seeking tradie business coaching, understanding registration requirements can help streamline compliance and avoid administrative headaches. A full list of FAQs and additional details on the LeavePlus portable long service scheme is available on their website.

 

What tradie employers need to know about Incolink 

What is Incolink?

While Incolink was originally formed to govern redundancy payments, it also offers insurances and wellbeing support services to those working in the commercial building and construction industries across Victoria and Tasmania.

As a membership-based organisation created through an alliance of employer associations and construction unions, Incolink provides a valuable suite of financial and wellbeing support services. From portable sick leave to skin health checks, Incolink addresses the real challenges faced by workers in the industry—something we often discuss in business coaching for tradies sessions.

Who has to register with Incolink?

Employers within the commercial construction sector are required to register employees with Incolink where workers are entitled to redundancy pay in accordance with:

• the terms of their Enterprise Bargaining Agreement (EBA)
• an industrial instrument
• the Contract of Employment
• Incolink Deed of Adherence
• other industrial instruments

Tradie business owners engaged in trade business coaching often seek guidance on how these agreements affect their responsibilities when registering employees

How does it work?

Employers make monthly redundancy contribution payments to Incolink on behalf of their employees, based on the number of weeks worked on a commercial construction site during the monthly period.

A full breakdown of the rates and payment methods can be found on the Incolink website.

There are two Redundancy Funds managed by Incolink under Deeds of Trust:

• Fund 1 – for companies working in the commercial building and construction industry in Victoria or companies who have an EBA with the CFMEU and CEPU.
• Fund 2 – for companies working in the Metal, Labour Hire and Engineering trades or companies in Victoria who have an EBA with the AMWU and AWU.

The funds collected by Incolink are used to provide not only redundancy payments when required, but also other necessary benefits and support services, such as:

Portable sick leave – this scheme allows workers to take unused sick leave days with them to their next position within the commercial construction industry.

Insurance – Income protection and Trauma insurance must be paid to any employee within the commercial construction industry unless not stipulated in the EBA.

Wellbeing support services – Incolink delivers wellbeing services via their 24/7 counselling service, health and skin checks (via the Incolink bus) and mental health support via the Bluehats suicide prevention program.

 

Industry organisations make compliance a lot easier

Imagine the sheer amount of paperwork and admin required to track employee details for long service leave, portable sick leave, insurance, and more—it’s exhausting just thinking about it!

Through tradie business coaching, I’ve seen firsthand how centralising these obligations significantly eases the burden for business owners who already have plenty to juggle. Since registration, information management, and claims are now processed online, compliance has never been easier.

 

UPDATE: Recent Court Rulings Expand LeavePlus Obligations – What This Means for Your Trades Business

Recently (April 2025) a couple of significant legal decisions have reshaped the way businesses like yours need to think about portable long service leave.

LeavePlus (formerly CoINVEST) plays a big role in how employer obligations are managed for tradies in Victoria. In action to get clarity on which industries are included in the ‘Construction Industry’, LeavePlus has had a landmark court ruling. <link: https://leaveplus.com.au/landmark-court-victory-media-release/>

As a business coach for established trades businesses, I’ve had a lot of conversations with owners lately around this. So let me walk you through what’s changed, what to watch out for, and how to stay ahead of it.

 

What’s changed: The legal definition of “construction work” just got broader

In April 2025, two Victorian Supreme Court decisions clarified and expanded the scope of who falls under the LeavePlus scheme.

 

Key cases and rulings:

Detector Inspector Pty Ltd v CoINVEST Ltd

EnergyAustralia v CoINVEST Ltd

In both cases, the court confirmed that even if your core business isn’t “construction” in the traditional sense, you may still need to register and pay LeavePlus contributions for certain workers if their job tasks qualify as construction work.

 

So who does this affect?

This change may impact a wider range of trades and maintenance-based businesses than before. If your team performs any of the following tasks, take note:

• Safety inspections (e.g. smoke alarm checks, gas appliance compliance)
• Preventative maintenance or minor repairs
• Installation of systems or equipment (HVAC, solar panels, etc.)
• Routine property servicing on commercial or residential sites

Even if these activities aren’t your company’s main bread and butter, if your team is out there with tools in hand doing “on-the-tools” tasks, there’s a good chance you’ll need to be paying into the LeavePlus scheme for those employees.

 

The risk: Back pay liabilities are now on the table

In the EnergyAustralia case, the court estimated the company’s unpaid LeavePlus contributions could total $800,000 per year, going back more than a decade. That’s a big wake-up call.

And it’s not just the back payments – interest and penalties can stack up fast if you’re found to be non-compliant.

For smaller businesses, even a few years of unpaid contributions for multiple employees could result in a bill that really stings.

 

What to do next: A practical checklist for business owners

Here’s what I’m recommending to my coaching clients to stay on the front foot:

1. Audit your team roles

Look at each job description or day-to-day task. Are any of your employees (or working subcontractors) doing hands-on work that fits under the expanded “construction” definition?

2. Check your LeavePlus registration status

Even if you’ve registered in the past, you might have overlooked some employees who now need to be included. Take time to verify.

3. Calculate potential back pay

If you suspect you’ve missed contributions in previous quarters or years, get advice from your accountant or HR advisor. Better to have a plan than be caught off guard.

4. Update employment contracts

Make sure all contracts reflect the correct classification of employees and include details about LeavePlus contributions (if applicable).

 

What this means for the businesses I coach

One of my long-time clients, a maintenance-focused electrical contractor, thought they were outside the LeavePlus scope because they don’t do major construction projects. After these court rulings, we revisited their obligations and found several employees whose tasks now count as “construction work”. We helped them register those workers correctly and build the costs into their pricing model moving forward.

The result? No surprises, no risk, and peace of mind.

 

Final thoughts: You don’t want to get this wrong

It’s never fun to deal with compliance surprises, especially ones that come with hefty price tags. But the upside is this: the system is there to support workers, and tools like LeavePlus (and Incolink for commercial builders) make it easier to meet your obligations without drowning in paperwork.

If you’re not sure where your business stands, now’s the time to find out. As a business coach, I help owners in the trades space navigate these kinds of operational risks every day – from compliance and financial modelling to team management and quoting profitably.

 

Need help figuring this out?

Speak with a mentor at Tenfold Business Coaching and get clarity around your employer obligations – and your business strategy as a whole.