Prime Minister Morrison and Treasurer Frydenberg yesterday announced the temporary Jobkeeper payment worth $130 billion over the next six months.

It is designed to help employers keep their staff – even if they can’t technically work in the current environment – and help employees keep their jobs. The objective is to maintain the workforce in its current format as best we can, so that we can turn it back on at a later date.

Here’s what we know from Treasury about how it will work…

Employers:

• The Government will provide $1,500 per fortnight per employee for up to 6 months.
• Businesses will be eligible if their turnover is less than $1 billion and they have demonstrated reduced turnover of 30% based on this time one year ago. (For businesses with a turnover of more than $1 billion, the reduced turnover needs to equate to more than 50% on the same time last year.)
• Employers must apply via the Australian Tax Office and provide supporting documentation of the downturn.
• If approved, the employer will receive $1,500 per fortnight per full-time, part-time or stood down employee on the books since 1 March 2020. Casual employees are eligible if they’ve worked with the employer on a regular basis for at least 12 months to 1 March 2020.
• Payments will be made monthly in arrears.
• Self-employed individuals will be eligible to receive the JobKeeper Payment where they have suffered or expect to suffer a 30 per cent decline in turnover relative to a comparable prior period (of at least a month).

Employees:

• Employees who ordinarily receive $1,500 or more in income per fortnight before tax, will continue to receive their regular income according to their prevailing workplace arrangements. The JobKeeper Payment will assist their employer to continue operating by subsidising all or part of the income of their employee(s).
• Employees who ordinarily receives less than $1,500 in income per fortnight before tax, their employer must pay their employee, at a minimum, $1,500 per fortnight, before tax.
• Employees who have been stood down, must be paid by their employee, at a minimum, $1,500 per fortnight, before tax.

We are supporting clients to access this payment for their business and will discuss the Jobkeeper payment in our upcoming webinar on Wednesday 8 April. Please register to attend and feel free to bring your questions.