As part of its response to keep Australia working during the current pandemic, the Australian Government announced today that it will extend the JobSeeker payments until the end of the year (with a possibility of extending beyond then) and JobKeeper payments until March 2021, with some changes.
Unveiled today by Prime Minister Scott Morrison, these changes will occur after September 27 and include:
- The JobKeeper wage subsidy will reduce at the end of September to $1200 a fortnight for full-time workers and to $750 for part-time workers, down from the current single rate of $1500.
- The scheme is being extended for six months, until March 28 next year, but will be revised down further at the start of January to $1000 for full-time workers and $650 for part-time employees working 20 hours a week or less.
- The JobSeeker coronavirus supplement will also be reduced at the end of September from $550 to $250 a fortnight, meaning those without a job will have their payments cut back from around $1100 under the current supplement to about $800 a fortnight.
- The reduced supplement will be added to welfare payments until the end of the year, when the government will reassess the economic situation, but Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the government anticipates it’s likely there “would need to be some continuation of the COVID supplement post-December”.
- The current Jobseeker and Jobkeeper payments will remain in place until September 27 when the above changes will then come into effect.
Further Support for Employers of Apprentices and Trainees
The Australian Government also recently announced a third round will be open for the Australian Government Apprentices and Trainees Subsidy and that it is now open to medium sized employers (199 employees or less). More information regarding support for businesses, including the Australian Government’s Supporting Apprentices and Trainees Subsidy (SATS) can be found here.
