Cost pressures, skills shortages and industrial relations concerns have dominated CCIWA’s annual Small Business Summit in Perth.
More than 200 small business representatives from a range of sectors gathered at the Pan Pacific in Perth for the summit, which comes ahead of WA Small Business Day on Saturday October 31st.
The event featured keynote addresses from Small Business Minister, Hon. Jackie Jarvis MLC, Small Business Commissioner Saj Abdoolakhan, Revo Fitness founder Andrew Holder and Dome Café founder Patria Jafferies.
CCIWA Chief Economist, Dr Daniel Kiely, said the impact of high inflation and rising fuel costs are hitting home for small businesses.
“Small businesses are the beating heart of our economy, but they’re bearing the brunt of the current economic conditions far more than their larger counterparts,” he said.
“Rising input costs, wages, taxes and charges, and a potential decline in consumer spending are all weighing heavily on small businesses in WA.
“As Small Business Day draws near, we’re urging all Western Australians to support their local small businesses as much as possible to keep money and jobs in our local communities.”
Dr Kiely said WA was on the cusp of some major opportunities for small businesses, including the AUKUS deal, clean energy projects and further development of our critical minerals sector.
“These opportunities will flow directly to small and medium sized businesses, but the policy settings have to be right to ensure businesses across all regions of WA can capitalise,” he said.
Dr Kiely said there was widespread concern about the impact of card payment surcharges on small businesses.
“The changes at a federal level do allow small businesses to pass on the costs, but doing so adds to menu costs, another burden on small businesses,” he said.
“It’s just another cost blow at the time when they can least afford it.
“Small businesses in WA have also raised concerns about changes to discretionary trusts, which are used regularly by family businesses to allow for flexibility and succession planning.”
CCIWA continues to advocate for reform to payroll tax to protect more small businesses from having to pay it.
“We’re calling on the WA Government to increase the threshold where payroll tax kicks in, because at the moment the $1 million threshold means many smaller businesses are captured,” Dr Kiely said.
“This is made worse by the sharp increase in wage rates in recent years, so some businesses have become liable for payroll tax simply through bracket creep. They’re now being hit with a tax bill despite not hiring any more staff or making any extra profit.”
