AUSTRALIA'S ‘bricks and mortar’ retail industry experienced a challenging 2020. Now, new research from a leading parcel delivery service reveals the solutions retailers believe will help the entire retail industry bounce back this year.

The findings come from an independent survey of 172 Australian retailers, commissioned by CouriersPlease (CP). 

When CP asked retailers about their own recovery, a third (36 percent) said they would be able to recover to pre-pandemic levels between July and December this year. Just a quarter (24 percent) revealed their recovery could be in July. Thirteen percent said their recovery would depend on restrictions lifting completely, and 8 percent said recovery would take place after 2021.

CP then presented retailers with a list of potential solutions that could help the retail industry recover faster – including an extension of the JobKeeper scheme and tax incentives from the government. CP asked retailers to choose what they think the industry needs to bounce back once social restrictions are removed. Respondents could choose multiple answers.

The majority of retailers (42 percent) believe an effective treatment or vaccine is needed, 34 percent said further government assistance to help them pay employee salaries, such as an extension of the JobKeeper scheme; 27 percent said tax incentives from the government; and 17 percent believe further cashback incentives from the government are necessary for the industry’s recovery.

One fifth (22 percent) of retailers said a recovery would require more cash for consumers to help boost their confidence. Consumer confidence fell by 27 percent when social restrictions were enforced last year.[1]

Paul Roper, chief commercial officer at CP said, "The retail industry has a long way to go to recovery. While e-commerce has remained strong, many bricks and mortar retailers were forced to close their doors last year. The end of JobKeeper in March, a slow rollout of the NSW Government’s Dine and Discovery voucher scheme and continuing COVID cases across the country, including the recent spike in cases in Melbourne, are just a few of the factors that could lead to cautious consumer spending this year.

“I encourage these retailers to consider shifting to, or growing, their online or omnichannel offering as more Australians become comfortable with online shopping. A number of support measures remain at retailers’ disposal, including the SME Guarantee Scheme and the instant asset write-off scheme.”

The full survey results, including breakdowns across organisation size and industries, can be found here: couriersplease.com.au/Portals/0/CP_Retail_Industry_White_Paper_230221.pdf

[1] Roy Morgan, March 2020 roymorgan.com/findings/8340-anz-roy-morgan-consumer-confidence-march-24-2020-202003232236

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THE Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) will appear before the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Economics at a public hearing on Wednesday, February 24, 2021 as part of the committee’s review of the 2019 ACCC Annual Report.

Chair, Tim Wilson MP said, "The committee is keen to continue scrutinising the ACCC on its pandemic response, enforcement, its review of hardship policies and in maintaining and promoting competition.

"Of particular interest, is the ACCC’s approach towards regulating the tech giants. Google, Facebook and Apple are dominant forces that could threaten competition and consumer interests. The committee is also interested in the ACCC’s role in the preparation and consultation phase of the News Media Bargaining Code currently before Parliament."

"The COVID-19 pandemic is not over. There’s still uncertainty in the accommodation and travel sectors as border closures and lockdowns continue. While mergers of struggling companies also warrant close examination," Mr Wilson said.

The ACCC last appeared before the committee in October 2020.

Public hearing details
Date: February 24, 2021
Time: 11am to 1pm
via videoconference

The hearing will be broadcast live at aph.gov.au/live.

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CPA AUSTRALIA has welcomed the permanent increase in the rate of JobSeeker, announced today, but says the amount of the rise may not be sufficient.

CPA Australia chief executive officer Andrew Hunter said, “For many unemployed workers the JobSeeker payment doesn’t provide adequate support or security. An increase was overdue before the pandemic.”

CPA Australia called on the government to permanently increase the rate of JobSeeker in its 2021-22 Federal Budget Submission.

Mr Hunter said, “We’re pleased the government has announced an increase in JobSeeker but the new rate still won’t provide adequate support or security to many recipients.

“A wide range of views have been expressed as to why today’s announcement is justified. We join this consensus from an economic and societal perspective.

“It doesn’t make sense to leave so many households struggling to make ends meet in these difficult times," he said.

“One of the surest ways to get money circulating in an economy is to assist people who will spend it. JobSeeker recipients have limited capacity to save and will use additional amounts to buy goods and services that support business and the economy.

“From a public interest perspective, people who are unable to find work shouldn’t be denied the ability to afford the basics; they shouldn’t be excluded from actively participating in society.

CPA Australia has recommended the government establish a regular review process for JobSeeker, similar to annual wage reviews conducted by the Fair Work Commission.

About CPA Australia

CPA Australia is Australia’s leading professional accounting body and one of the largest in the world. CPA Australia has  more than 168,000 members in over 100 countries and regions, supported by 19 offices globally. Core services include education, training, technical support and advocacy. CPA Australia provides thought leadership on local, national and international issues affecting the accounting profession and public interest. CPA engages with governments, regulators and industries to advocate policies that stimulate sustainable economic growth and have positive business and public outcomes. cpaaustralia.com.au

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AN AUSTRALIAN portable entitlement scheme is now desperately needed and would be practical to introduce if based on proven models, according to a new report by the McKell Institute.

A portable entitlement scheme would see accumulated benefits like long service leave and sick leave follow workers from job to job in an account, like superannuation.

The new McKell Institute report, Insecure Work & Portable Entitlements: a solution for Australia, has found a scheme that allows Australians to carry entitlements like from job to job could be modelled on successful schemes that currently exist in sectors like Victorian construction.

A portable entitlement scheme was recently identified by Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese as an area of intended reform, but the Federal Government has so far attempted to dismiss the idea as impractical. 

But report author Ryan Batchelor, executive director of the McKell Institute Victoria, said the case for a more universal portable entitlement scheme was now impossible to responsibly ignore. 

"When one in five workers changed jobs in the past year and 3.7 million have no access to paid leave that should tell us we need a portable entitlement scheme urgently," Mr Batchelor said. 

“COVID-19 has shown how vulnerable we all are when people without enough sick leave show up to work sick. Fortunately, there are now a range of practical models for implementation, several of which with proven real world track records. 

"The Commonwealth should get on board instead of trashing a good policy idea before they’ve even had a chance to properly consider it.

"Our report shows there are actually significant benefits for the government, which currently picks up the tab when companies go bankrupt and workers lose their employees through the Fair Entitlements Guarantee. Claims that the sky will fall in are simply not borne out by the facts," Mr Batchelor said.

"Australians are extremely comfortable with the idea of superannuation, and a portable entailment scheme would be analogous and familiar.

"The pandemic has shown us the significant cost of people turning up to work when sick. Any extra costs from providing more people with sick leave pale by comparison with the costs of this pandemic on our community.

"Australia invented long service leave as one of our many civilising workforce innovations. It's now time we built on that proud legacy."

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THE Indigenous Affairs Committee will hear from Woolworths Group and Aboriginal Peak Organisations Northern Territory (APO NT) this Thursday as part of its inquiry into pathways and participation opportunities for Indigenous Australians in employment and business. Witnesses will be attending by conference call.

Committee Chair Julian Leeser MP said both organisations would provide valuable insights to the inquiry as Woolworths is an industry leader in Indigenous recruitment and APO NT is a respected voice in Aboriginal governance.

"Woolworths currently employs over 4,500 First Nations people," Mr Leeser said. "Since partnering with the government under the Employment Parity Initiative, more than 2,800 Indigenous job seekers have been offered employment with the company.

"APO NT has long been an advocate for Indigenous self-determination and economic development. The committee looks forward to discussing ways to reduce barriers to Indigenous participation and economic opportunities at this hearing," Mr Leeser said.

Public hearing details

Date: Thursday, 25 February 2021
Time: 11.40am to 12.50pm AEDT

A live audio stream of the hearing will be accessible at https://www.aph.gov.au/Watch_Read_Listen.

A full program will be available at the inquiry website.

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THE Your Future, Your Super legislation introduced into Parliament this week will implement a key Royal Commission recommendation that will save consumers up to $1.8 billion in fees in the first three years of implementation, according to Financial Services Council (FSC) analysis.

FSC CEO Sally Loane said the recommendation, to ‘staple’ a customer to a single fund, which they take with them from job to job, will put an end to the scourge of multiple accounts and unnecessary fees in the superannuation system. This is a policy FSC has advocated for a long time.

“The FSC also supports the objective of the broader package of reforms, which aims to weed out underperforming funds, empower consumers, and enhance the transparency of the super system for fund members,” Ms Loane said.

“FSC analysis on the benefits of stapling shows consumers will save up to $1.8 billion in fees in the first three years after implementation. The super industry can only justify calls to increase the super guarantee to 12 per cent if the system becomes more efficient.

“The Your Future, Your Super reforms, however, are not without weaknesses and we do have some concerns about the design of the new benchmarking methodology.

“To be clear, the FSC supports weeding out underperforming funds. Duds need to go, we don’t care if they are run by a profit-making company or a trade union and employer group," Ms Loane said.

“However, we want to see some changes to the design of performance benchmarks. The custodians of our superannuation system are responsible for investing $3 trillion in savings and small changes in trustee decision-making can have major ramifications for the allocation of capital in the Australian economy.

“The FSC is also concerned that while funds have been required to set CPI-linked investment return targets, and have measured themselves against these targets in Government mandated dashboards, they will now be retrospectively assessed against a new benchmark.

“While we will continue to work with Government in relation to the detail of the reforms, we commend their strong consumer-focused intent,” Ms Loane said.

The FSC’s submission to the Your Future Your Super draft legislation: https://fsc.org.au/resources/2130-fsc-submission-your-future-your-super-draft-legislation/file

About the Financial Services Council

The Financial Services Council (FSC) has more than 100 members representing Australia's retail and wholesale funds management businesses, superannuation funds, life insurers, financial advisory networks and licensed trustee companies. The industry is responsible for investing almost $3 trillion on behalf of more than 15.6 million Australians. The pool of funds under management is larger than Australia’s GDP and the capitalisation of the Australian Securities Exchange and is the fourth largest pool of managed funds in the world.

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THE Queensland Resources Council (QRC) has welcomed the Australian Government’s decision to hold an inquiry into the impact of recent banking and insurance policy changes on export industries like resources.

The QRC will provide a submission to the Joint Standing Committee on Trade and Investment Growth to highlight increasing concerns about the impact of ‘anti-resources activism’ on the ability of some businesses to renew insurance policies, particularly public indemnity insurance, and their ability to access finance.

“This is an extremely serious situation for the resources sector and will lead to job losses and businesses closing down as no business can operate without access to adequate insurance and finance,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“As an example, the issue with public indemnity insurance is a problem because our members require all contractors and suppliers to have this cover or we cannot engage them to provide goods and services.

“It is becoming a massive issue, which is why the QRC is urging every Queensland business associated with mining and gas operations having problems with insurance or finance - whether it’s dealing with unreasonable premium increases or being refused cover or finance - to provide a submission to this inquiry before the closing date of March 31."

Mr Macfarlane said ‘anti-resources activism’ is starting to affect smaller businesses in vital regional centres like Mackay, Rockhampton, Townsville and Toowoomba.

“The QRC is hearing anecdotal evidence about regional businesses having problems renewing insurance policies or loan refinancing or even rental agreements because of their association with the resources sector,” he said.

“This is not only unfair and could put people out of business, but it’s very disappointing given resources has helped steer Queensland through the COVID-19 pandemic and resources is Australia’s number one export industry.

“The law-abiding businesses that work in and with the resources sector have every right to expect fair terms for banking and insurance and we want this inquiry to shine a spotlight on cases where that is not happening.”

Mr Macfarlane said it is in the national interest for a strong resources sector to continue to flourish.

“In Queensland alone the resources sector adds $82.6 billion to the economy and supports more than 420,000 jobs,” he said.

“All Australians benefit from a strong resource sector so we should be taking steps as a nation to further consolidate our position as a global leader, especially as Queensland resources are set to play a critical role in the further uptake of renewable energy sources and technologies around the world.

“The technical nous that will support this innovation lives in the Mining Engineering and Technology Services (METS) companies who are most affected by this insurance drought.

“We can’t do this without the support of the small businesses and expertise in our regional centres.”

www.qrc.org.au

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THE NSW GOVERNMENT is slashing nearly 700 frontline TAFE NSW jobs, leaving campuses across the state unworkable and creating the conditions for a privatisation fire sale, according to the Community Public Sector Union of NSW (CPSU NSW).

TAFE NSW has advised the union of two major restructures which will see 10 percent of educational support jobs go. Restructures in student services and facilities management and logistics cut 678 positions, including 470 regional jobs.

"Gladys Berejiklian and Dominic Perrottet are deliberately dismantling TAFE NSW to ready it for sale," said Stewart Little, general secretary of the CPSU NSW.

"They're helpfully trimming it down for future corporate buyers to come in and snap it up in another NSW assets fire sale.

"What do the people of NSW get from this gutting of critical training infrastructure? Fewer jobs and a hobbled education system. In the middle of the worst economic downturn that the state has seen in a generation the Berejiklian government is closing pathways to prosperity."

The jobs cuts include people who work directly with students, such as student advisors, customer support officers, field officers, VET fee help coordinators, help desk operators, marketing and promotions support officers.

Workers who maintain the campuses are also going, including: gardeners, caretakers, facilities officers, tradespersons, tool store persons, security officers,  asset and fleet control managers, and site services assistants.

"The union will be fighting these job cuts at every stage. TAFE NSW is a vital piece of infrastructure that must remain in public hands, not dismantled for private operators."

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