❓ Mr. Krsticevic asks the Premier what support is being provided to WA casual workers ineligible for JobKeeper. The Premier outlines state government economic stimulus measures and emphasizes JobKeeper is a Commonwealth responsibility.
AnsweredQoN 233Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
CORONAVIRUS —
CASUAL WORKERS
233. Mr A. KRSTICEVIC to the Premier:
What
is the Premier doing to help the tens of thousands of struggling Western Australian
casuals who are not eligible for JobKeeper payments?
CASUAL WORKERS
233. Mr A. KRSTICEVIC to the Premier:
What
is the Premier doing to help the tens of thousands of struggling Western Australian
casuals who are not eligible for JobKeeper payments?
AnswerView source ↗
The government has put in place a whole
range of measures to support and stimulate our economy within our financial
capacity. We have put in place payroll tax cuts, payroll tax waivers for a range
of businesses, support for Lotterywest to assist people and charities in
financial need, waivers for small businesses that rent premises from the state
government, a range of waivers for licence fees and the like for businesses
that are licensed by the state government, electricity rebates for small businesses,
and a freeze on household fees and charges. The total cost of all this is
somewhere in the vicinity of $2 billion. Obviously, the area of the JobKeeper
payment is a matter for the federal
government. I said publicly, and I repeat it in here, that the Prime Minister
came up with, I think, a very good package, when it comes to JobKeeper,
to assist businesses and people who have lost their jobs out of what has
occurred. The latest advice is that the unemployment rate will climb to
somewhere in the vicinity of 10 per cent. I personally think that is
optimistic, and no doubt it would be far worse but for the JobKeeper payment. I
welcome the JobKeeper payment. It is a six-month arrangement. We need to find a
way to ensure that by the expiry of that six months, we have as much economic
activity and the economy standing up as we possibly can.
In relation to the area of
casual employees, that is clearly a matter that the commonwealth government is
addressing. When it comes to state government employees, obviously, we
have ensured that we have not had any lay-offs—unlike some local
governments, I might add—and we are ensuring that our workforce is
continuing and is being redeployed into COVID-related matters.
range of measures to support and stimulate our economy within our financial
capacity. We have put in place payroll tax cuts, payroll tax waivers for a range
of businesses, support for Lotterywest to assist people and charities in
financial need, waivers for small businesses that rent premises from the state
government, a range of waivers for licence fees and the like for businesses
that are licensed by the state government, electricity rebates for small businesses,
and a freeze on household fees and charges. The total cost of all this is
somewhere in the vicinity of $2 billion. Obviously, the area of the JobKeeper
payment is a matter for the federal
government. I said publicly, and I repeat it in here, that the Prime Minister
came up with, I think, a very good package, when it comes to JobKeeper,
to assist businesses and people who have lost their jobs out of what has
occurred. The latest advice is that the unemployment rate will climb to
somewhere in the vicinity of 10 per cent. I personally think that is
optimistic, and no doubt it would be far worse but for the JobKeeper payment. I
welcome the JobKeeper payment. It is a six-month arrangement. We need to find a
way to ensure that by the expiry of that six months, we have as much economic
activity and the economy standing up as we possibly can.
In relation to the area of
casual employees, that is clearly a matter that the commonwealth government is
addressing. When it comes to state government employees, obviously, we
have ensured that we have not had any lay-offs—unlike some local
governments, I might add—and we are ensuring that our workforce is
continuing and is being redeployed into COVID-related matters.
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