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The Victorian Chamber surveyed our members on Thursday, 3 June 2021 to better understand the impact and uptake of the $459.3 million third round of the Business Support Fund which the Victorian Government announced on Wednesday, 2 June 2021. 

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We received over 650 responses across all industries, which helped inform the following findings:

• Just 13 per cent of respondents think the support package is adequate, with most preferring Lockdown 4.0 to end sooner than further government support.
• Fifty-seven per cent of respondents nominated wages as the major cost they need covered, followed by rent at 23 per cent, bills at 16 per cent and stock at five per cent. This finding reinforces the Chamber’s advocacy for a wage subsidy mechanism which the Federal Government has since announced.
• Sixty-four per cent of respondents acknowledged that the grants should focus on helping businesses to make it through the lockdown while 36 per cent stated that they should compensate business for all costs and lost trade as a result of the lockdown.
• Forty-two per cent of businesses thought they would be eligible for the State Government support based on their understanding. In Regional Victoria that figure was 57 per cent compared with 37 per cent in Metropolitan Victoria.
• More than half of businesses will seek the support, at 54 per cent. The figure is higher for Regional Victorian businesses at 60 per cent than Metropolitan Melbourne at 52 per cent.
• An overwhelming 85 per cent of respondents had accessed some form of government support throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Almost half (45 per cent) of respondents had accessed both Federal and State Government support previously in the form of JobKeeper and other grants. Just 15 per cent hadn’t accessed any support.
• The majority of members accessed between one and three grants or support measures, with 36 per cent accessing JobKeeper, 26 per cent State Government support and 16 per cent cashflow for employees.

Victorian Chamber Chief Executive Paul Guerra said respondents highlighted the need to snapback out of lockdown.

“This lockdown must end to unite the state under the same restriction levels once again and then snapback from mid-to late next week. This is driving a wedge through Victoria. We need to come back together. We were fast in and we should now be fast out of Lockdown,” he said.

“We need to quell the fear in the community. We can continue to manage the risk of COVID-19 through QR code compliance, vaccination, contact tracing and wearing a mask in public settings.

“Let’s stay safe, have a proportionate response and get business back to work. Let’s see communities come together once again.”

Respondents would like to see vaccine roll-out accelerated, including in workplaces. Another common theme was the need for payroll tax relief for the quarter impacted by this lockdown.

The Victorian Chamber thanks our members who participated in this survey which enables us to communicate the findings to government and continue to advocate on your behalf.

More information and help

As always, the most up-to-date information about restrictions are available on the Victoria Government’s Coronavirus (COVID-19) website. For information about how restrictions affect your business, visit the Business Victoria website.

If you, as an employer or an employer’s representative feel unsure about what your organisation has in place or would like help in putting a plan in place, please do not hesitate to contact the Victorian Chamber’s Health, Safety and Wellbeing (HSW) team on 03 8662 5196.

Members can also call our Workplace Relations Advice Line on 03 8662 5222 to discuss their employment obligations and any issues that arise.