There’s a nervous consensus among small business owners – and employees – that once JobKeeper comes to an end at the end of September, that it’s going to spell redundancy for thousands of positions.
With over 800,000 Australian currently unemployed, salon owners fear that once JobKeeper dried up, there is going to be no other choice but to let staff go.
It’s for that reason that salon owners have joined the thousands of other business owners lobbying for the government to extend the scheme.
In a survey of 2300 business leaders by the Australian Institute of Company Directors, 81 per cent said that they wanted the JobKeeper scheme to be extended in a more cautious and conservative way.
And this survey is backed up by the results of the May Australian National University poll, which found that of the 3219 Australians surveyed, 57.6 per cent said that extending JobKeeper and JobSeeker would do a great deal to mitigate Australia’s economic issues.
According to Paul Zahra, CEO at the Australian Retailers Association, the support measure has acted as a lifeline for many retailers, allowing them to retain staff and ideally, it could continue.
“We expect [businesses] will need some level of ongoing support and, like other programs, JobKeeper will require ongoing review and potential adjustment,” Paul said.
National Retail Association chief executive Dominique Lamb agreed, and added that should the next Annual Wage Review result in a wage increase, the government may need to offer grants to assist businesses in meeting wage costs.
“The end of the JobKeeper program is by no means the end of the road to recovery,” Dominique said. “Businesses will need continued support, which may include grants, tax concessions and further rent relief.”
Visit the #BEAUTYSTRONG hub at https://www.professionalbeauty.com.au/beautystrong/
For more news and updates, subscribe to our weekly newsletter.