Regulations that previously required WorkSafe to be notified if an employee, contractor or a contractor's employee received a positive COVID-19 diagnosis and had attended the workplace within their infectious period have been removed.

In efforts to address current workforce shortages due to COVID-19 and aid Australia’s economic recovery, the Australian Government has amended visa conditions for student and working holiday makers.

Welcome to our first edition of Victorian Chamber News for 2022. We know that staff shortages, supply chain issues, isolation requirements, density limits and lack of accessibility to Rapid Antigen Tests (RATs) continue to cause difficulty and stress and the Victorian Chamber team is working hard to ensure your voices are heard and practical solutions can be found.

If you were lucky enough to get in a break over the school holidays, you would have noticed the crippling effect that Covid-19 is having on our small businesses across the state.

Did you know that starting a business in Victoria requires operators to navigate more permits and licences than any other state? The time it takes to jump through these regulatory hoops is just one of the costs of doing business in Victoria. The Chamber has listened to our members’ concerns about how these barriers are impacting them and has responded with this comprehensive report that provides the first benchmarking exercise of its kind in Australia.

It’s the report that you helped us create, and one that might well sharpen the focus on what Victoria needs to do to be the best state to operate a business in. I’m very proud of to release the Cost and Ease of Doing Business in Victoria Taskforce Report.

As 2022 progresses and the COVID-19 pandemic remains part of our lives, there has never been a better time to look after the mental health of your apprentices. Free training for managers and apprentices is available through the Victorian Chamber’s partnership with EML.

The Victorian Chamber was honoured to host former United Kingdom Prime Minister, The Rt Hon Theresa May MP, with members and special guests at an exclusive luncheon at the Palladium at Crown.

The State Government is encouraging Victorians to experience the state’s renowned hospitality, tourism and creative industries with more than $100 million in rebates and vouchers, while businesses are also in line for $100 million in stimulus programs.

Great news this week with several positive developments to set us on a cracking pace for our state’s COVID-19 recovery.

If you employ labour hire workers in your business, upcoming changes to the OHS Act 2004 will require you to regard them as your own employees for safety purposes.

‘Building back business’ and ‘building for our future’ are the cornerstones of the Victorian Chamber’s submission to the Australian Government ahead of the 2022-23 Federal Budget.

Yesterday we celebrated International Women’s Day, a global event marking the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women, and amplifying the call for diverse, equitable and inclusive workplaces.

We have all heard the phrase: ‘The standard you walk past is the standard you set’. But how many of us understand how to interrupt behaviors that are unsafe or that we simply need to question without causing offence?

Habits can be hard to break and I’m sure we all felt a bit uncertain last week as office workers started to return after the better part of two years working from home.

The 2022-23 State Budget must enable business to play a leading role in Victoria’s economic recovery according to the Victorian Chamber.