VOTERS in marginal Queensland seats are willing to support political parties at this month’s State Election that commit to policies supporting Queensland and Australian contractors ahead of foreign multinationals.

An exclusive poll for Australian Owned Contractors (AOC) of more than 500 voters across 12 marginal Queensland electorates revealed that 90 percent of voters in these key seats wanted to stop the foreign domination of Queensland major infrastructure projects.

Voters in these key electorates feel so strongly about the issue that 49 percent indicated it would influence their vote at the State Election, with a further 34 percent saying it might influence their vote.

Currently, more than 80 percent of infrastructure projects in Queensland in excess of $100 million were awarded to foreign owned contractors.
AOC recently publicised research that shows five out of Queensland’s six biggest transport infrastructure projects – worth $8.9 billion – have been awarded to foreign owned companies in the last five years.

AOC director Scott Power said at a national level, 95 cents in every dollar spent by governments on major infrastructure projects ($500 million-plus) goes to foreign multinationals.

“Voters in key marginal seats want our politicians to change the rules and provide more opportunities for local companies to build Queensland,” Mr Power said.

“Queenslanders are not happy that profits are flowing overseas. They want Queensland and Australian owned business to take part in head contracts and deliver more of the state’s infrastructure.”

The polling also revealed that 79 percent of voters in these seats were unaware that all of Australia’s major construction companies were now foreign owned and 63 percent were unaware that most major contracts were being awarded to these major companies.

“This is why the AOC has embarked on our Let Us Build Queensland campaign,” Mr Power said.

“The campaign provides Queenslanders and Australians the opportunity to ensure their voice is heard by signing our petition.”

AOC is calling for Queensland and Australian politicians to change the rules and ‘unbundle’ infrastructure projects into smaller packages so Queensland and Australian companies can bid for them.

If a large contract ($500 million-plus) cannot be broken up, AOC is calling on the government to ensure that Australian companies are still able to play a role alongside foreign multinationals through procurement practices that ensure local industry sustainability.

www.letusbuild.com.au

ends

THE Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman, Kate Carnell has urged big businesses to report their payment times to small business suppliers as soon as possible, with the Payment Times Reporting Scheme to come into effect from January 2021.

Ms Carnell said it was important that businesses with an annual turnover of $100 million-plus heed the intention of the legislation early.

“These new laws represent important progress at a time when Australian small businesses are hurting and need to be paid on time to survive,” Ms Carnell said.

“I am strongly encouraging the 3,000 businesses this legislation applies to, to do the right thing and comply with the payment time reporting requirements as soon as possible. Big businesses should act quickly to be up front and honest about the time it takes to pay their small business suppliers.

“Delaying compliance until penalties apply would be unacceptable," Ms Carnell said. “While we support the Payment Times Reporting Scheme as a step in the right direction, it won’t solve the problem of late payment times on its own.

“The latest CreditorWatch data for September shows businesses are being paid an average of 37 days overdue – an increase of more than 200 percent on this time last year. This is having a devastating impact on small businesses, particularly those hit hard by the COVID crisis.

“That’s why my office continues to call for legislation requiring SMEs to be paid in 30 days. This is the more effective way to drive meaningful change in business payment performance across the economy," she said.

“Cash flow is king for small businesses and when small businesses are paid on time, the entire economy benefits.”

www.asbfeo.gov.au

ends

A SURVEY of 600 small business owners from Color Of Change and  the small business organisation Main Street Alliance has revealed disproportionate pandemic impact on black American businesses, a flawed Paycheck Protection Program and the devastating outcomes of continued government inaction

In the US, critical federal coronavirus relief legislation remains stalled in negotiations between lawmakers and the White House.

Barring swift and decisive action by Congress to provide direct grants to black small business owners, the poll indicated black small businesses were on the brink of extinction, with 46 percent either already forced to close or planning to close within the next six months.

The new nationwide poll surveyed 600 small business owners representing a range of demographics on the impact of COVID-19 on their businesses as well as their views of federal coronavirus relief measures. Coupled with the findings of Color Of Change’s previous Paycheck Protection Program poll released in May, and stories from Main Street Alliance members this Fall, the results of the new survey clearly reinforce the dire need for both improved and immediate government relief in order to save black small businesses and the communities they prop up.

“Our new poll emphasises what so many black small business owners already know: unless Congress works quickly to pass new relief legislation and address the racial inequities that exist within current relief measures, a disproportionate number of black small businesses will shutter forever,” Color Of Change president Rashad Robinson said.

“Small businesses are the cornerstone of our communities. The devastating consequences of these closures will ripple throughout black communities and last for generations. Our federal government can no longer wait to bring immediate, accessible relief to black small businesses.”

Black-owned businesses not only generate billions of dollars for the economy annually and create thousands of jobs but also provide critical avenues of upward mobility and independence for black people, generate monetary support for racial justice causes, and create physical spaces where employees and community members can engage in meaningful activism.

In fact, the new survey shows black and Latinx owners are more likely than Asian and white owners to be engaged in a range of community activities. Additionally, black small business owners are most likely to make statements in support of racial justice causes at 46 percent, in comparison to 24 percent of Latinx owners, 21 percent of Asian owners, and 14 percent of white owners.

The decimation of black small businesses therefore threatens not only individual black people and families but entire communities and racial justice movements.

Beyond illustrating the unanimous need for relief, the survey also indicates that any new measures must better address the needs of black small businesses. The results paint a picture of how the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and other federal relief measures present too many barriers to access and offer insufficient support to black businesses.

Despite being more likely to apply for PPP support, black small business owners had to wait longer to hear back about their application and were less likely to receive the amount of assistance they requested. Only 33 percent of black PPP applicants received a response within two weeks, whereas 50 percent of Latinx and 44 percent of white recipients heard back in two weeks. Further, only 37 percent of black small business owners received the amount of assistance they requested.

The inequities and hurdles baked into the PPP application process and existing legislation have fueled sentiment among small business owners that COVID relief measures were not designed to help them. Across racial and ethnic subgroups, the poll shows that a majority of small business owners believe COVID-19 relief packages were passed in the interests of major corporations rather than small businesses and working people. Black owners were most likely to believe this, with 77 percent agreeing.

“As Senate Republicans scramble to push through the installation of a new supreme court justice, the stakes of this moment couldn’t be higher for millions of small businesses and working families across our nation suffering financial devastation from the ongoing economic impacts of COVID,” said Amanda Ballantyne, executive director of Main Street Alliance.

“Our polling results are clear on what small business owners believe they need to succeed. With the right investments in long term federal relief designed to rebuild our struggling small business sector, we can not only stem the tide of economic loss, we can rebuild our economy and put ourselves on a path to a more equitable and sustainable economy where small business owners and working people can thrive. But we do not have months to wait.”

The survey shows that while grants are a priority across business groups, black business owners were most likely to see federal grants as a top priority compared to other racial groups, indicating the need for direct grants rather than loans as well as measures like PPP set-asides for businesses with 10 or fewer employees — a category an overwhelming majority of black businesses fall under. 

A summary of key takeaways here.

Methodology:

Lake Research Partners designed and administered this survey that was conducted online nationwide between August 31 and September 16, 2020. The survey reached a total of 600 small business owners with oversamples of 100 black small business owners, and 100 Latinx or Asian American or Pacific Islander small business owners. The sample was drawn from an online panel of small business owners and respondents were screened to be the current owner of a small business in the US, who operates and makes decisions for the business, operates a for profit business, and employs 0-49 employees including themselves and excluding contractors, with a  cap of 25 percent of respondents who employed one person before the pandemic and currently employ one person. To ensure the data reflects attributes of the actual population of small business owners in the US, the base sample was weighted by gender, region, age, race, and number of employees prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The sample of black small business owners was weighted by gender and age. The sample of Latinx and Asian American Pacific Islander small business owners was weighted by gender, region, race, and number of employees prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The overall margin of error for the entire sample is +/- 4.0. 

About Color Of Change

Color Of Change is the nation’s largest online racial justice organisation. It helps people respond effectively to injustice in the world around them. As a national online force driven by over 7 million members, Colour of change moves decision-makers in corporations and government to create a more human and less hostile world for black people in America. www.colorofchange.org.

About Main Street Alliance

The Main Street Alliance is a national network of small business coalitions working to build a new voice for small businesses on important public policy issues. Main Street Alliance members are working throughout the country to build policies that work for business owners, their employees, and the communities they serve. www.mainstreetalliance.org.

ends

THE Queensland Resources Council (QRC) has welcomed a $45 million State Government pre-election commitment to a new future skills initiative to encourage closer partnerships between high schools and industry-related job opportunities.

“The Queensland Government has already been a vital partner in our 80-strong Queensland Minerals and Energy Academy (QMEA) under the Gateway to Industry Schools Program and this funding will further boost the capacity of some of our partner schools to set young people onto trade and STEM career pathways,” QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane said.

“QMEA schools from across the state would benefit from the promised new facilities that will support the development of skills in engineering, hospitality and the emerging hydrogen industry, and prepare students for the skills demanded by our sector,” he said.

These include:

• Dysart State High School – $900,000 for commercial standard kitchen facilities
• Chinchilla State High School and Tara State College - $4.8 million for engineering annexe and equipment to support training opportunities in local mining, gas and electrical industries
• Bowen State High School - $1.4m upgrade to aquaculture facility
• Pimlico State High School - $1.4m enhanced aquaponics infrastructure
• Gladstone State High School –  $2m for training for emerging hydrogen industry
• Roma State College - $1.5m for infrastructure for animal husbandry and agricultural studies
• Glenala State High School - $2.25m upgrade to trade training centre for four schools
• Rockhampton State High School - $2.5m for aquaculture research centre facilities
• Dalby State High School - $2.5m upgrade to rural/industrial manufacturing facilities
• Clermont State High School - $1.3m for commercial kitchen and industry- standard facilities
• Cloncurry State School - $500,000 upgrade to welding and metal work facilities
• Mackay Northern Beaches State High School – $1.2m for engineering, early childhood, arts and information/digital media/technology/business training facilities
• Thuringowa State High School - $1.2m science labs refurbishment.

Mr Macfarlane said QRC members already invest more than $1 million each year in the QMEA to ensure resources companies have the skilled people they need to operate safely and successfully.

He said investing in training for young people to encourage them to work in the resources sector was more important than ever, because of the vital role the mining and gas industries were playing to support Queensland’s economic recovery from COVID-19.

“The QRC has also welcomed the state government’s commitment to a Queensland Resources Industry Development Plan to steer future growth in our sector,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“This plan includes extra support for STEM skills and a commitment to employ more industrial design and technology teachers, which will be of critical importance to the success of the government’s future skills initiative,” he said.

www.qrc.org.au

ends