Cuts to SAAA payments hurting small business, says MEA

Changes to the Federal Government’s Support for Adult Australian Apprentices (SAAA) payments are hurting small businesses, Master Electricians Australia (MEA) has said.

According to MEA, policy changes to the Australian Apprenticeships System have reduced financial support for first-year adult apprentices from $13,000 over 12 months to a lump sum of $4000 paid after completion of the first year, with second-year adult apprentices losing the $100 weekly subsidy.

“Our principal concern is the retrospective nature of these changes for adult apprentices,” said MEA NSW/ACT state manager Jody McGann. “Employers who have taken on adult apprentices have done so in good faith and on the understanding that they will receive a certain level of financial support from government to compensate for the higher wages that adult apprentices receive.

“Since the policy was changed these businesses have been absorbing increased wage costs and it has now become obvious that this has presented an added challenged for the majority of small business owners who are already struggling to keep their businesses afloat in a volatile economy, not to mention putting the employment of existing mature-age apprentices in jeopardy.”

The MEA has called on the NSW and ACT Governments to call for the immediate reversal of the changes and allow employers registered for the scheme prior to October 2012 to continue receiving the funding as it was originally introduced.