Thursday 30 September 2021
The Australian Retailers Association (ARA) has raised concerns over the tapering of Federal Covid support payments, given the disparate roadmaps in NSW, Victoria and the ACT meaning businesses will be trading at different levels in line with vaccination protocols and targets.
ARA CEO Paul Zahra said the tapering of support payments will result in an uneven recovery, unfairly impacting businesses and workers in some locations.
"We appreciate that support schemes like this can't go on forever, but it's important to note that when lockdowns are lifted, it's not an immediate snap back to the way things were. Some sectors of retail will face ongoing restrictions and cashflow challenges," Mr Zahra said.
"Retailers in CBD locations, particularly small business operators along with travel retailers, face a long road to recovery. We're still missing international tourists and the working from home trend continues, significantly reducing shopping and dining customers in the city.
"Complicating matters are the inconsistent approaches in the NSW, Victorian and ACT Government roadmaps, which all have different trigger points for reopening.
"Discretionary retail reopens at 70% in NSW, but the same businesses will have to wait till 80% in Victoria. There're also inconsistencies in the reopening of food courts, which will continue to be restricted to take-away only in Victoria and the ACT. Capacity limits make it extremely difficult for many food operators, particularly small businesses, to cover their operating costs without the usual customer numbers.
"We're pleased to see the NSW Government maintain its funding contribution for the JobSaver program until the end of November, which recognises that not all businesses will be recovering at the same levels when they reopen and that some will continue to be prevented from trading at their full potential. The other jurisdictions should be mindful of the challenges businesses will continue to face when 80% of the population is vaccinated, and when payments from the Commonwealth will cease.
"It's frustrating to have the states and territories going in different directions for their reopening's - it's been a recurring theme throughout the pandemic, and it undermines our business interests. There's been no consistency in terms of what triggers a lockdown, what defines 'essential retail', and we're seeing this again in their reopening roadmaps.
"The key thing we need is consistency and assurances from government that once businesses are open in line with vaccination targets we will see an end to lockdowns. We have to live with Covid and manage things in an open, safe and responsible way."
