The Federal Government has extended JobKeeper by six months, but will taper payments and tighten eligibility requirements.
Payments will fall from $1500 to $1200 a fortnight from the original September cut-off date.
From 2021, payments will decrease again to $1000.
Employers who work fewer than 20 hours a week will receive $750 from September, and $650 from 2021.
The scheme is now set to end 28 March, 2021.
Tightening eligibility
Businesses with a turnover up to $1 billion will need to continue to prove a 30 per cent reduction in turnover each quarter from pre-pandemic levels.
So to be eligible for the JobKeeper payment from October, businesses will need to show the required turnover reduction in both previous quarters.
And they will need to prove the same reduction across all three previous quarters ending December 31 to be eligible for the subsidy until March.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison says the extension of JobKeeper needs to be done in a way that’s responsive to circumstances.
“JobKeeper is designed to find its level with those businesses who need it most and the employees who need it most.”
Prime Minister Morrison says many businesses will continue to be heavily-affected by COVID-19 restrictions for some time.
The Chamber of Commerce and Industry WA has welcomed the extension to a refined JobKeeper scheme, along with the “appropriate tapering of the rate of subsidy.”
Read CCIWA’s full response here.
JobSeeker supplement cut
The JobSeeker coronavirus supplement was also extended for three months beyond the original September cut off, but will fall from $550 to $250.
People on JobSeeker will also be required to apply for more jobs than earlier in the pandemic to remain eligible for the supplement.
If they are offered a job, they must accept it or risk losing the JobSeeker payment.
However, the revised JobSeeker scheme will increase the amount a person can earn per fortnight before their supplement is reduced.
Head to covid19.cciwa.com for an updated JobKeeper 2.0 – Employer’s Guide.
