Businesses are reminded that as of 4th January, 2021 the Jobkeeper payment to eligible employees has now reduced. Josh Frydenburg confirmed that the payment will end on 28 March 2021.
The new jobkeeper payments are as follows:
4 January 2021 – 28 March 2021
- Tier 1 Eligible Employee $1000 per fortnight
- Tier 2 Eligible Employee $650 per fortnight
Entitlement to the tier 1 or tier 2 rate is based on whether an employee meets the 80-hour threshold test below.
- Tier 1 – 80 hours
the eligible employee’s total hours of work, paid leave and paid public holidays was 80 hours or more in the 28 days finishing on the last day of the last pay period that ended before 1 July 2020 or 1 March 2020.
- Tier 2 – less than 80 hours
the eligible employee’s total hours of work, paid leave and paid public holidays was less than 80 hours in the 28 days finishing on the last day of the last pay period that ended before 1 July 2020 or 1 March 2020.
It will be interesting to see businesses prepare for the end of jobkeeper on 28 March 2021 or whether extending will occur.
Extending JobKeeper at the federal level would require the passage of new legislation and redesigned eligibility rules. Under the existing test, businesses need to prove they have suffered a 30 per cent or more decline in revenue in the previous quarter, compared to the same quarter a year prior.
Businesses are learning to adapt to COVID protocols and/or moving online. Meanwhile, tax cuts and interest rate cuts continue to flow, making talk of a “fiscal cliff” overblown.
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