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The Federal Government JobKeeper Scheme Explained

01/04/2020

Yesterday’s introduction of the Australian government’s $130 billion stimulus package, came as welcome relief for many businesses that have been severely impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak. Under the scheme, employers will be able to claim a fortnightly payment of $1,500 per employee where they meet a set eligibility criteria.

Under the Job Keeper scheme, eligible employers will be required to ensure that each eligible employee receives at least $1,500 per fortnight (before tax). 

 What this means is 

  • any eligible employee who usually receives $1,500 a fortnight will continue to receive $1,500 a fortnight;
  • Any eligible employee who earns less than $1,500 per fortnight, will receive an additional top up to $1,500 per fortnight and;
  • Any eligible employee who ordinarily receives $1,500 or more in income per fortnight before tax, will continue to receive their regular income according to the prevailing workplace arrangements. The Job Keeper Payments will subsidise part of an employee’s income and the remainder must be paid by the employer. The exceptions to this are either where a lawful agreement has been made with the employee to temporarily reduce their income or where an employee is stood down. In both instances the employee is entitled to receive at minimum $1,500 per fortnight.

It is the employers choice whether they pay superannuation or any additional wage on top of the job keeper payment.

The eligibility criteria for the Job Keeper payment is set out below:

Eligible Employers
  • A business that has a turnover of less than $1 billion and their turnover will be reduced by more than 30 percent relative to a comparable period a year ago (of at least a month); or 
  • A business that has a turnover of $1 billion or more and their turnover will be reduced by more than 50 per cent relative to a comparable period a year ago (of at least a month); and 
  • the business is not subject to the Major Bank Levy i.e. operating as a bank.
Eligible Employees
  • Are currently employed by the eligible employer (including those stood down or re-hired) and;
  • were employed by the employer at 1 March 2020 and;
  • are full-time, part-time, or long-term casuals (a casual employed on a regular basis for longer than 12 months as at 1 March 2020) and;
  •  are at least 16 years of age and
  • are an Australian citizen, the holder of a permanent visa, a Protected Special Category Visa Holder, a non-protected Special Category Visa Holder who has been residing continually in Australia for 10 years or more, or a Special Category (Subclass 444) Visa Holder; and
  • are not in receipt of a Job Keeper Payment from another employer.

The Job Keeper payments will be rolled out in the first week of May and backdated to March 30 2020.  Payments are for a maximum period of 6 months.

Information on the payment and registration is available on the ATO website. There are some complexities to consider and it is important you get across the scheme in its entirety. We highly recommend that you seek guidance from your accountant in the first instance.

For any help or general HR advice on how to navigate these challenging times, please contact the team at Employee Matters on  (02) 8021 4206 – or email us on info@employeematters.com.au

 

Disclaimer: The advice, information and resources provided by Employee Matters in response to the COVID-19 impacts and any policies, processes and documentation provided to you, is generic and not specific to any business. It is based on the guidance and information we have at the time you receive it. It does not constitute specific legal advice and should not be relied upon as such. Employee Matters will not assume any legal liability that arises from our advice or use of our documentation.