JobKeeper extended and revised

Insights21 July 2020

By David Catanese, Karl Rozenbergs, Anthony Bradica and Adam Dimac

The $70 billion JobKeeper program has been providing many employers with wage subsidies of $1500 per fortnight per employee since 30 March 2020. The program was to end in September 2020, but is expected to be extended.

By David Catanese, Karl Rozenbergs, Anthony Bradica and Adam Dimac

The $70 billion JobKeeper program has been providing many employers with wage subsidies of $1500 per fortnight per employee since 30 March 2020.

The program was to end in September 2020, but is expected to be extended because of the ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

While details are yet to be provided, the Federal Government is expected to:

extend JobKeeper to March 2021;
limit JobKeeper eligibility to only businesses whose turnover remains below the relevant threshold (currently, employers only need to meet the threshold in one month or quarter, not on an ongoing basis);
reduce the amount of the JobKeeper subsidy employers receive for each full-time employee;
create a second-tier (lower) subsidy amount for part-time employees

We will provide a further update once the Government announces the details.

Read our latest thinking on COVID-19 in the Hall & Wilcox COVID-19 Resource Centre for more information on JobKeeper and other support for businesses.

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