Victorian businesses blast hit-and-miss support

Thousands of jobs are being put at risk due to inadequate support in Victoria’s extended lockdown, business groups have warned.

Victorian businesses have lashed the state and federal governments, warning inadequate financial aid will spark thousands of job losses.

A week into the state’s fifth lockdown, business industry groups say it is the last straw for many businesses on the brink of collapse.

Lockdowns – now covering three states and more than 12 million people – are tipped to land a big blow on the national economy and industry is calling for an overhaul of current support models.

They have been privately lobbying senior federal government ministers to bring back a version of JobKeeper.

Ben Lustig owns and manages CrossFit Moreland and is concerned gyms had been hit particularly hard by coronavirus restrictions. Picture: Josie Hayden

But while Scott Morrison hasn’t explicitly ruled out a return of JobKeeper, he said on Wednesday the system was not suitable for the current lockdowns.

“When we put JobKeeper in place, it took four to six weeks in order for the system to be rolled out … I don’t have six weeks,” the Prime Minister said.

He defended the level of support given to affected Aussies, saying the disaster payments, which Victorians can register for from Friday, was the same as the JobKeeper payments in the December quarter.

Mr Morrison said the only difference was it was being paid directly by the government, not employers.

“We need to be able to turn this on and turn it off quite quickly and with the method we have chosen, we are able to do just that,” he said.

Many within government believe that between both tiers of government, enough support is being given.

The state government increased its support by $282m for 90,000 businesses on Thursday after about $200m in automatic payments was already made to businesses earlier this week.

However the government was unable to say when businesses that didn’t apply for support during the May and June lockdown would be able to do so.

Chris Lucas, whose Luca Restaurants brand includes Chin Chin, said the combination of a sluggish vaccine rollout and a “recalcitrant bunch of premiers acting in their own interests” had decimated business.

“They’ve decided that the policy of lockdowns is here to stay for the moment, and if that’s the case we have a cash liquidity crisis,” he said.

Retailers have been forced to keep their doors shut during the lockdown. Picture: Asanka Brendon Ratnayake/AFP

“For hospitality it’s not just the lockdowns, it’s ongoing trade restrictions coming out of lockdown. I fail to see any more pressing issue than saving hundreds of thousands of jobs and businesses.”

Small Business Australia executive director Bill Lang said the small business families of Australia were being hung out to dry.

“What they need is not a JobKeeper 2.0 but a Small Business Saver 1.0,” he said.

“This needs to be targeted directly to small business families … which will guarantee that jobs are not lost.”

CrossFit Moreland’s Ben Lustig said gyms had been hit particularly hard as they were often forced to stay shut in the week after lockdown ended.

“The longer something goes on, you know, you’d expect support to increase, not decrease.” he said.

“It just seems like we’re in a bit of a cycle of a lack of support, meaningful support.”

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