Under the scheme, apprentices will need to have been in employment by March 1 but wages will be back paid from January 1.
To encourage businesses and Group Training Organisations to pick up apprentices or trainees who have been let go, larger businesses may also be eligible for the wage pay-back if they take on an out-of-trade apprentice or trainee.
Employers can register for the pay-back from April 1 and are able to claim up to $7000 a quarter for apprentices and trainees in 2019/20 and 2020/2021. The wages will be paid up to September 30 this year but the government has stated they will re-assess in September whether this needs extending.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison stated “We want to ensure that as we go through these difficult months and quarters ahead that young people in apprenticeships will be able to continue”.
Managing Director for BUSY At Work, Paul Miles, said “Businesses that employ apprentices and trainees provide the skills needed for Australia now and into the future and we welcome the government’s package to encourage them to keep their apprentices employed during this extraordinary time. This really is terrific news for employers and apprentices”.
For over 40 years, BUSY At Work has been a leading provider of apprenticeships, employment and education services in Queensland, and since 1998 have played a key role in growing Australian Apprenticeships in Queensland, being the longest-serving Australian Apprenticeships Support Network Provider in the state. In 2015 BUSY At Work expanded to include Apprenticeship services in Western Australia.
For more information regarding the wage pay-back scheme, and how BUSY At Work can support employers and job seekers with apprenticeship or traineeship needs, contact 13 BUSY (13 28 79) or visit www.busyatwork.com.au
