Rebecca White MP | Labor Member for Lyons
Peter Gutwein must push strongly at today’s National Cabinet meeting for an extension to the JobKeeper program.
Labor Leader Rebecca White said it is vital for Tasmanian workers affected by COVID-19 and for the state’s economy that JobKeeper be extended beyond September.
“Today’s National Cabinet meeting really is a test of the Premier’s mettle,” Ms White said.
“Peter Gutwein only committed last weekend to fighting to extend the JobKeeper program beyond September.
“With the Prime Minister giving strong indications he has no plans to extend JobKeeper, Peter Gutwein must now stand up and fight for the state’s workers.
There have been thousands of workers supported by the JobKeeper payment who would be facing unemployment without the wage subsidy.
“Significantly, just over 17% of direct and indirect employment in Tasmania is reliant on tourism.
“Now, with the state’s borders shut and no indication of when they might reopen, those jobs are in limbo and affected workers will need ongoing support.
“Without an extension of the JobKeeper there is a real risk of further economic contraction and more job losses.
“There is every indication the Prime Minister is going to play hardball with Tasmania, but the Premier must stand his ground and he must push the Prime Minister strongly on extending JobKeeper.
“Peter Gutwein has talked tough, but he has a poor track record when it comes to lobbying Scott Morrison.
“Those two have history – who could forget Scott Morrison’s reported insult to Peter Gutwein during negotiations over the GST?
“This time, the Premier must take up the fight to the Prime Minister for the sake of Tasmania.”
A grant scheme set up by the government to provide relief to tenants in the private rental market is failing Tasmanians just days after it came into effect.
Labor Leader Rebecca White said tenants are finding hidden barriers to accessing financial relief.
“Labor welcomed the introduction of Government’s COVID-19 Rent Relief Scheme, having called on the government to do more to support struggling tenants in the private rental market.
“People who were unable to pay their rent because they’ve been affected by COVID-19 had hoped the scheme would reduce the financial pressure they face.
“But just days after the grant became available, people are finding there are hoops to jump through that the government did not make clear when it announced the scheme.
“For tenants to be eligible for relief under the scheme, landlords have to agree to a rent reduction. An application will not even be considered without that in place.
“Some tenants may not feel confident to ask their landlord or real estate agent for a rent reduction for fear this may jeopardise their tenancy or renewal of their lease, particularly when it has been very difficult for people to find a rental property in Tasmania.
“Those tenants who do approach their landlord or Real Estate Agent have no guarantee a rent reduction will be agreed, which leaves the tenant ineligible for the rent relief grant.”
Ms White said she’d been contacted by people who were running out of options to keep a roof over their head.
“Caitlin rents with her sister but they have faced financial hardship due to Caitlin losing hours with her employer as a result of COVID-19. Sadly, as a casual, Caitlin is not eligible for the JobKeeper payment.
“Caitlin is exactly the type of person who needs rent relief and this grant would make a huge difference to her and her sister, but there is no certainty her landlord will agree to reduce their rent.
“It’s critical that the grant scheme does not put barriers in the way of those who need it.
“It is understandable if some landlords feel reluctant about agreeing to reduce the rent for their tenant before an application for rent relief is approved because for some landlords, the rent from a property may be their only income.
“The grant process is flawed and the government needs to fix it to make sure eligible tenants can access the support they need.”
Today’s National Cabinet meeting is shaping up to be a major test for Peter Gutwein.
On the weekend the Premier finally committed to fighting to extend the JobKeeper program beyond September.
This is particularly important for Tasmania where just over 17 per cent of direct and indirect employment is reliant on tourism. Without an extension of the JobKeeper there is a real risk of further economic contraction and more job losses.
Today’s meeting will be a showdown between Peter Gutwein and Scott Morrison, who has given the strongest indication yet that he has no intention of extending Job Keeper beyond September.
The Prime Minister will deliver a speech to the National Press Club today in which he is expected to outline changes to industrial relations, skills and training and tax.
“Now, more than ever, it is important that Tasmania’s voice is heard.
“In addition to fighting to extend Job Keeper, Mr Gutwein must ensure that workers’ rights are not eroded by changes to industrial relations.
“He must fight for skills funding to be prioritised to public training providers.
“And he must ensure that Tasmania does not lose out in any tax changes.
“There is every indication the Prime Minister is going to play hardball with Tasmania – using any leverage he can to force the state to lift border restrictions earlier.
“Peter Gutwein has talked tough, but he has a poor track record when it comes to lobbying Scott Morrison.
“Those two have history – who could forget Scott Morrison’s reported insult to Peter Gutwein during negotiations over the GST?”
While Peter Gutwein has finally seen the light by calling for the JobKeeper program to be extended, he continues to ignore those workers who are ineligible for payments under the scheme.
Labor Leader, Rebecca White, said the Premier must now lobby his federal counterparts for support for casuals, local government workers and visa workers.
“While Labor is pleased Peter Gutwein has finally come to the party by calling on the JobKeeper scheme to be extended beyond September, he is failing casuals, local government workers and visa workers who aren’t covered by the scheme,” Ms White said.
“Too many people have been overlooked and are now in financial hardship. These are people who have worked, paid taxes and are members of our community.
“Peter Gutwein must now demand the Federal Government extends eligibility for the JobKeeper program to cover all workers.
“There is no excuse not to extend it given the Federal Government’s embarrassing $60 billion budgeting mistake meaning the “line in the sand” which previously prevented these workers from being eligible no longer applies.
“Labor is calling on Peter Gutwein to do the right thing and stand up for Tasmanian workers and businesses.”
News today that the Federal Government made a $60 billion budgeting mistake with the JobKeeper program is embarrassing but provides an opportunity for those currently excluded workers to finally get some support.
Labor Leader, Rebecca White MP, has again called on the Federal Government to expand the JobKeeper program to casuals, local government workers and visa worker who aren’t currently eligible for support from the program.
"The Federal Treasurer has always had the power to extend eligibility for the JobKeeper program to casuals, local government workers and visa workers and now he can do the right thing and support those workers without having an impact on the program's budget,” Ms White said.
“Given the Government is well below the projected budget for expenditure on this program it also means it can be extended so that tourism, hospitality and other hard hit businesses can be supported beyond September.
"The best way to avoid further economic contraction and job losses is to expand and extend the JobKeeper program and now the Government has no excuse not to.
"Premier Peter Gutwein should stand up for Tasmanian workers and businesses and demand that the JobKeeper program be expanded and extended to help people re-engage with work and make sure the Tasmanian economy doesn't decline further in September when the payments stop.”
Alarming new jobs data out today strengthens Labor’s call for the continuation of the JobKeeper scheme.
The statistics paint a bleak picture for Tasmania with 7,100 jobs lost in the month, 4,400 of which were full time. Our unemployment rate is now up to 6.1%.
Labor Leader, Rebecca White, said the data reinforced the need for Peter Gutwein to lobby the federal government for the continuation of the JobKeeper scheme.
“We need to fight to save every job in Tasmania and if the federal government proceeds with its decision to remove JobKeeper in September, we will see a massive further spike in the unemployment rate,” Ms White said.
“More than 20 thousand Tasmanians have lost their jobs from this pandemic and withdrawing JobKeeper too early, or reducing the number of businesses and workers that benefit, risks forcing thousands more people into unemployment.
“Peter Gutwein must lobby the Prime Minister to expand the scheme rather than cutting it back as too many people who provide valuable service in our communities have missed out, including casual workers, local government employee and people on temporary work visas.”
The government must do more to increase Tasmania’s COVID-19 testing rate to build a clearer picture of the impact of the virus in our community.
Labor Leader, Rebecca White, said now was not the time to become complacent.
“It’s worrying that despite restrictions starting to ease, the number of Tasmanians presenting for testing is dramatically declining, with just 424 state-wide yesterday,” Ms White said.
“While the government has been encouraging Tasmanians with symptoms to get tested, it needs to go beyond targeting only symptomatic people.
“We know it can take up to 14 days for COVID-19 symptoms to show and in up to 50% of positive COVID-19 cases in Australia, patients have shown no symptoms, which is a clear sign we need to also test people who are asymptomatic.
“We have the capacity to test 2000 people a day in Tasmania and the government must introduce new measures including setting up mobile testing clinics that are easily accessible for people in places like supermarkets.
“In Victoria, testing clinics have been set up in Bunnings’ car parks and that is something the government should be exploring here.
“We also need to ensure all workers can access testing without the worry they might miss out on income, this is particularly important for casual workers who don’t have leave entitlements.
“Peter Gutwein must lobby the federal government to introduce pandemic leave to ensure those workers will not be left out of pocket for doing the right thing and staying home from work if they’re feeling unwell.”
The Labor Party has welcomed clearer timeframes for Tasmania’s recovery process from the COVID-19 crisis.
Labor Leader Rebecca White said a cautious approach to easing restrictions was the best model going forward.
“While Tasmanians now have a clearer picture of when restrictions may ease, we must not become complacent,” Ms White said.
“It’s important Tasmanians follow the plan for recovery, continue to adhere to social distancing rules and present to testing clinics around the state.
“This recovery plan relies on all of us continuing to do the right thing to prevent us returning to stronger restrictions in the future.
“I want to thank Tasmanians for their efforts so far in staying home and saving lives - together we will get through this.”
Labor has again urged the Premier to expand the membership of his recently established Economic and Social Recovery Advisory Council to include a representative from the union movement.
Labor Leader Rebecca White said Tasmanian workers deserve a voice in planning for the state’s recovery from COVID-19.
“20,000 Tasmanians have already lost their jobs since the start of this pandemic and many others have had their hours reduced,” Ms White said.
“With so many Tasmanian workers suffering pain and hardship, it is inconceivable that they will not have a voice on the body tasked with planning for our economic and social recovery.
“I wrote to the Premier last week, urging him to reconsider and include a representative from Unions Tasmania on the Economic and Social Recovery Council.
“Now we have the Independent Member for Clark Madeleine Ogilvie and the Liberal Speaker Sue Hickey backing Labor’s call.
“Workers across our state have performed fundamental and critically important jobs throughout this period, from supermarket employees to cleaners to health professionals.
“All of these people, who have kept Tasmania going during unprecedented challenges, deserve to be represented in the decision making that will shape our recovery.
“It is important to hear the voices of workers across a range of industries that will be responsible for leading us out of this crisis so that we can build a stronger, fairer and more resilient Tasmania.
“It is also critical to ensure that workers feel safe to return to their jobs.
“Expanding the council’s members to allow for a representative from the union movement is incredibly important to fully understanding how the economic and social recovery can best be achieved.
“I again urge the Premier to reconsider and include a representative from Unions Tasmania on the council to ensure working Tasmanians are given a voice at the table.”
Alarming new information detailing serious failings at hospitals in the North West strengthens Labor’s call for a Royal Commission into the COVID-19 crisis in Tasmania.
Reports in the media from whistleblowers have revealed the North West Regional Hospital and the North West Private Hospital were struggling with staff shortages and concerns about personal protective equipment weeks before they were shut down due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
Labor Leader Rebecca White said the revelations were worrying and a Royal Commission was the only way to get to the bottom of the issue.
“Tasmanian has seen one of the worst outbreaks in the country at the North West Regional Hospital. One third of Tasmania’s hospitals were closed, the military was called in and nearly 5000 people were forced into quarantine and the North West was locked down,” Ms White said.
“225 Tasmanians have contracted the illness and, tragically, 13 people have died to date, many businesses have closed and nearly 20,000 people have lost their jobs.
“It’s alarming to hear today that only weeks before these North West hospitals were forced to close due to the outbreak, they were struggling to recruit cleaners, orderlies, locums and nurses and also had serious concerns about PPE.
“Labor had been raising concerns of staff shortages and budget cuts in our major hospitals and the impact this is having on health workers and patients in the months leading into this crisis.
“The impact of COVID-19 has been enormous and the Government needs to commit to a Royal Commission in acknowledgement of the massive health, social and economic impacts the community has felt as a consequence of COVID-19.”
