Tasmanian businesses and workers are having their say on how alternative long-service leave arrangements could be developed for people in the cleaning, security and community sectors. 

The Minister for Workplace Relations, David O'Byrne, today opened a forum involving business leaders and unions looking at the feasibility of establishing portable long service leave arrangements for these sectors.

"The dynamic of our workforce is changing," he said.

"The reality is that instead of working for one employer for your whole working life, now you can often work for a number of different employers to gain greater skills and experience.

"A disadvantage of this is that many people fail to reach the threshold for long service leave entitlements.

"Given the high work ethic combined with modern work pressures experienced by members of Tasmania's workforce, the ability to qualify for long service leave is even more important now than it has been in the past.

"The industries we are focussing on are those that are more transient and itinerate in nature. 

"The cleaning, security and community sectors are industries that tend to be more mobile in nature, making it less likely that these employees would have the continuous employment necessary to qualify for long service leave."

Mr O'Byrne said long service leave was an important reward and incentive for people working in these sectors.

"Long service leave helps our workers have a decent break to recuperate, re-energise and come back relaxed, refreshed, and raring to go," he said.

"Today's forum is an important step in addressing the inequity currently faced by many employees in the cleaning, security and community sectors.

"It's a chance to get the thoughts and opinions of both employees and employers to enable us to give proper consideration to this important issue."