TODAY, the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry is launching a new initiative to help Victorian business survive under tough business conditions exacerbated by the bushfire and coronavirus crises.

The initiative, offered for the first time, will waive membership fees for one year for all Victorian businesses up to a value of $700. Existing members will receive an additional $500 credit.

The Victorian Chamber has developed the initiative in response to business concerns, with many members reporting they may have to close their doors after being hit hard by the impacts of bushfires and coronavirus.

"Waiving membership fees is not a decision we made lightly; we made this decision because business owners have told us they are struggling," Victorian Chamber chief executive Paul Guerra said. ". We want to make sure Victorian businesses have the best chance of success.

"Businesses need to be supported, with a well-trained workforce and plan for growth. This initiative helps businesses navigate all the pressures they are facing by giving them a support base that’s got their back," he said.

“The Victorian Chamber advocates on behalf of businesses, but when they are not doing so well, we need to help. Extraordinary times call for extraordinary actions and this is certainly something the Chamber has never done before.

“We’ve been the voice of Victorian business for 167 years and we listen to our members. They have told us what they need and we will address this by giving them access to practical help to steer them to success.”

The initiative is open to every Victorian business because we believe that Victorian business needs our help and we want to make sure every business, no matter its size, can access the expert services it needs to see a way back to profit.

As part of the year-long initiative, the Victorian Chamber will hold a series of roadshows in metropolitan and regional Victoria throughout the year where businesses will have an opportunity to discuss concerns, gain information on growing their profits and provide feedback and information on the issues they want the Chamber to raise with government policy makers.

Local, state and federal politicians will be invited to attend so that they can hear directly from business.

The Victorian Chamber initiative is supported by services offered pro bono from some of our members, who will be able to steer and advise businesses what they can do to keep their business afloat and work towards growth. Information on the services offered is available at victorianchamber.com.au.

To be attributed to :

“The Victorian Chamber advocates on behalf of businesses, but when they are not doing so well, we need to help. Extraordinary times call for extraordinary actions and this is certainly something the Chamber has never done before.

“We’ve been the voice of Victorian business for 167 years and we listen to our members. They have told us what they need and we will address this by giving them access to practical help to steer them to success.”

“BANKS and other lenders need to pass today’s rate cut on in full without delay,” Master Builders chief economist Shane Garrett said today.

The Reserve Bank has announced that its key official cash rate is to be reduced by 25 basis points in order to support the economy through the coronavirus challenge.

“Economic growth had already been too low before the coronavirus issue took hold, with confidence and domestic demand struggling," Mr Garrett said. 

“New home building is one of the activities to have been adversely affected by the economic slowdown. The reduction in new dwelling starts over the past few years has been very sizeable," he said. 

“There had been signs of a recovery in high-density home building during the second half of 2019.

“However, figures out earlier today show that apartment/unit approvals plunged during January having dropped by 35 percent during the month," he said. 

“The unprecedented headwinds faced by the economy and our building industry mean that the onus is on banks and lenders to fully pass on today’s interest rate cut to mortgage borrowers and small businesses without delay,” Mr Garrett said. 

www.masterbuilders.com.au

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THE Queensland Resources Council (QRC) has raised concerns that proposed industrial manslaughter laws will have the reverse outcome of decreasing the safety culture in the mining industry. 

QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane today told a Parliamentary Committee examining the proposed legislation that safety remains the sector’s top priority, but changes were needed to ensure the Bill met its purpose. 

“The resources industry has been a willing participant and partner in reforms to enhance mining safety, including through the safety roundtable last year, the subsequent safety reset and the Sean Brady safety review,” Mr Macfarlane said. 

“Safety is fundamental to the operation of resources sites, and a fundamental value that operators share with the regulator, workers and their representatives.   We are all working towards the same goal, an industry where every worker goes home unharmed at the end of every shift. 

“However, QRC believes the Bill as drafted could have the perverse outcome of decreasing safety culture and risking unintended consequences," Mr Macfarlane said.

“The current Coal Mining Health and Safety Act has been in operation for two decades and it was drafted in the wake of the Moura No. 2 Mine disaster that claimed 11 lives on the 7th of August 1994. 

“This legislation made landmark changes to safety laws for the resources industry.  These changes were not reflected in safety laws for other industries. 

“These safety laws governing the coal mining industry and protecting coal mining workers established the unique role, duties, responsibilities and obligations of statutory positions such as the site senior executive (SSE). The onus and the obligation for safety onsite rests upon those statutory office holders, including SSEs.

 “Under our current legislation SSEs who do not meet their obligations face the prospect of a fine or a custodial sentence," Mr Macfarlane said. “The Government’s stated intent to amend Work Health and Safety legislation by adding industrial manslaughter offences was to enable executive officers to be charged in the event of criminally negligent behaviour which had led to the fatality of a worker.  

“As the resource acts include statutory positions, it is not simply a matter of translating the industrial manslaughter provisions in the Work Health and Safety Act into the existing resources acts.  

“To do so causes a number of unintended consequences and risks reducing the likelihood that executive officers will ever be able to be charged as the industrial manslaughter offence is likely to disproportionately target the SSEs and other statutory positions.

“Rather than extending the prospect of a fine or jail time to those decision-makers beyond the mine site, the industry expects this Bill to load a heavier burden on site-based SSEs and the positions reporting to them, making their fundamental role untenable," he said.

“Recognising the onerous personal statutory duties that these positions already hold with associated penalties including the potential to be imprisoned for criminal manslaughter, QRC seeks the exclusion of statutory positions from the definition of Senior Officers.  

“The purpose in seeking this change is not to weaken the provisions, rather it is to enable the intent of the legislation to be achieved, that is, to ensure that corporate decision makers can be held personally liable for criminal acts of negligence causing death," Mr Macfarlane said.

“QRC believes that without these changes the Bill also runs the risk of diminishing safety by undermining the culture necessary to prioritise safety. The Brady report made it clear that the most important element of an effective safety culture is timely, comprehensive and honest incident reporting.

“The Bill as proposed creates a disincentive for workers to report these details.  While any mine death is tragic, the industry as a whole works together to learn quickly from any onsite incidents.

“This real-time safety sharing culture will be diminished by legislation that discourages anyone from openly sharing information for fear of prosecution," he said.

“The Bill also includes a late addition for which there has been no consultation or evidence provided. That issue is the proposal that all statutory officials in coal mining must be employed by the coal mine operator. 

“There is no evidence to suggest this requirement would have any impact on improving safety outcomes.  The Brady report made no findings that the reporting culture of contractor statutory position holders was inferior to the reporting culture of employees in those positions. 

“QRC and the resources industry remain committed to making improvements to mine safety and this requires full collaboration with other stakeholders on meaningful reforms.”

QRC’s submission.

www.qrc.org.au

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ALMOST 40 percent of recent retirees are struggling financially, a new survey reveals.

A news survey commissioned by Industry Super Australia also shows that instead of kicking their feet up more than a quarter of the recently retired had to go back to work - many to keep the lights on.

It also reveals that retirement was thrust upon almost 45 percent of workers, meaning the more they can put towards their savings during their working life the better prepared they’ll be when it ends.

A total of 734 industry fund members aged 47 years and older participated in either an online survey or a telephone interview overseen by Susan Bell Research between December 2019 and January 2020.

The survey revealed 38 percent of recent retirees reported either living on a very tight budget with only enough for essentials, or that they were not making ends meet. A spike from a similar 2010 research report, when 30 percent of reported they were either living on a very tight budget or not making ends meet.

In 2019, 20 percent of retirees said their golden years were not as comfortable as they expected.

And the gender pay gap persists in super – with the average pre-retiree woman ($190,000) having just more than half the balance of men ($340,000), this gender inequality can partly be attributed to women spending on average 12 years less in full-time work than men. 

And with almost half of pre-retirees anxious about how they will fund their retirement, the only way to deliver them some certainty is for the super rate to be lifted to 12 per cent by 2025 – as legislated. Delays to lifting the super rate has already cost the average Australian worker $100,000. 

The promised super rate increase is the best way to give Australians control on when they finish work and the financial independence to live the retirement of their choice. 

Industry Super Australia chief executive Bernie Dean said, “With almost 40 percent of retirees struggling to make ends meet Australian workers can not afford any delay to the promised increases in the super guarantee rate.

“Only by lifting the super rate will workers be able to have the retirement of their choosing and the best chance to control when they end their working life.

“With an ageing population and many retirees doing it tough, the only way for the government to defuse this ticking time bomb is to lift the super rate.”

www.industrysuper.com

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